Three Chandigarh students figured among the top four performers in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class XII, the result of which was declared on Sunday.
The topper, Raksha Gopal of Noida, was followed by Bhumi Sawant De, Aditya Jain and Mannat luthra from Chandigarh.
Bhumi Sawant, a science student from Chandigarh, secured the second rank in the country with 99.4 per cent marks while Aditya Jain and Mannat luthra, commerce students, emerged joint third toppers getting 99.2 per cent each.
Noida-based girl Raksha Gopal has scored a near-perfect 99.6 per cent to bag the first rank in the examinations.
All three city students from Chandigarh study in private schools. Bhumi Sawant is a science student from DAV School, Chandigarh while Aditya and Mannat are from the same school - Bhawan Vidyalaya.
Their parents said they had advised their children to stop using the social media few months before the exams so that they could concentrate better on their studies.
While Bhumi plans to pursue B.Tech in computer science, Aditya and Mannat want to join the civil services.
“It feels great that I have secured 99.4 per cent marks and placed at the second spot countrywide. I want to give entire credit to my parents, they supported me a lot,” Bhumi told mediapersons in Sirsa, her maternal grandparents home.
Asked about her daily study schedule, she said, “I was flexible with my routine. After the school, I used to attend coaching classes in the evening. I used to study for 4-5 hours daily and revise my lessons.” She said she never put herself under any kind of pressure “but remained focused on what I had to do.”
“I never thought too much about the results. I knew I had put in hard work and was confident of doing well. My hard work has paid off,” she said.
She said her parents broke into “tears of joy” and sweets were distributed among the family members and friends after the results.
Bhumi’s parents said they were extremely happy because their daughter has made entire Haryana proud.
“Girls have proved they can outperform boys. I am proud of Bhumi. She has made entire Haryana and her country proud,” said her father.
Aditya Jain, who lives in Panchkula, near here, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is his role model.
“PM Modi rose to this position from a humble background proving that anything is possible with hard work, grit and determination,” he said.
Aditya said he wants to join the civil services and serve the country.
Asked if he was expecting to be among the toppers, he said, “My board exams were great and I was expecting very good results but never expected to be among the toppers. Topping the examination is something you don’t have in your hand, this is all about luck. I had put in the hard work and luck was with me.”
He said, having a time-table and giving equal weightage to every subject are very important.
His father said when the examinations were approaching, he used to tell his son not to go out to play because of the fear that he might pick up an injury before the exams.
Another topper, Mannat luthra said she never thought she would be among the toppers. “But I always felt good to top school examinations. Honestly speaking, I never liked anyone scoring better than me...I will say consistent hard work has paid off for me,” Mannat said. Mannat’s mother said her daughter always topped in her class right from nursery class.