Fourth year in a row, Delhi student has topped the CBSE Class XII Board examination. A student of Montfort School in Ashok Vihar, Sukriti Gupta scored 497 marks out of 500 in Science stream and aims to become an engineer from IIT. Her formula is “consistency”.
“I did not expect to top... I only aim at giving my best. Topping the examination is a matter of luck, perhaps. Those who do not top are nothing less than me and I am much more than my marks. They do not define me. There is much more to me than the score and every other person has some talent different from peers,” a confident and humble Sukriti told The Pioneer. She speaks less about her achievement and more about those who are left behind in the race.
While success is defined only with staggering scores in the contemporary academic set up, Sukriti and her parents were trying to maintain calm amid the media buzz at their Ashok Vihar residence.
“I did expect that she will score good marks but topping the examination should not become the only focus… This way many parents pressurise their children to top which is not possible. Everyone cannot get the same score. The culture of topping will not fetch us anything collectively,” says Sukriti’s father Rakesh Gupta, who is Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer, posted in Income Tax Department.
However, the happiness over the success is visible on Sukriti’s mother’s face who herself topped in Physics in 1984. “Sukriti told me last night that she might top but I toned her down. I am happy that she has done well,” said Renuka Jain Gupta, who is also an IRS officer posted in Income Tax Department.
Worried Skruti — who is going to write the JEE entrance examination for the IIT — is awed by the idea of making it to the prestigious institute. “This examination is more important to me than the boards,” she said before getting interrupted by her father. “There are many other options for studying engineering than IITs. It could be IIT, DTU or any other institute,” said her father, adding parents should only tell children to give their best and be ready for any result.
“The guidance should be to give your best but be ready for any result. What if a student gives the best and does not pass the examination with flying coloursIJ It should not be taken to head, neither the success nor the failure,” he said further.
Recently, the success of Tina Dabi, who qualified the Civil Service examination from Delhi was celebrated across the country. While Delhi is setting a trend of toppers with girls at the fore front, it is worth the celebration. But should success become an obsession, with a trend of omitting the word failure from the discourse, is something to worry about.