Nisarg Chadha.Nisarg Chadha, an 18-year-old student of Navrachana school in Sama of Vadodara, emerged as the only candidate from Gujarat – among 24 students across the country – to secure 100 percentile in the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Mains result declared late Friday night. He ranked second in the All India Ranking (AIR) and the first in Gujarat.
With preparations in swing for the JEE Advanced exam scheduled on September 27, Nisarg said that he wants to pursue research in physics from the Indian Institute of Science (IISC), Bangalore. He switched off his mobile phone on Saturday morning and explained, “I do not want this euphoric feeling to get the better of me. I know things will settle down in a day or two.”
Since he had already scored 100 percentile in JEE Mains held in January this year, Nisarg did not appear for the exams held this month. “He has been preparing for JEE since he was in class 10,” his mother, Dr Amola, said.
Nisarg’s parents are doctors. While his mother is a faculty member at Shree Mahalaxmi Homeopathy Medical College and Hospital in Vadodara, his father, Amit Amola, is a urologist.
“The lockdown acted as a boon as he got the time to re-revise. At times, he would get a little uncertain, but didn’t lose his focus and patience,” his mother added.
Thrilled with the results, his school’s principal, Suprabha Menon, said, “Nisarg has been a bright student right from his kindergarten years. He has excelled not only in academics, but also in sports and co-curricular activities.”
One of his teachers, Bindu Matthews, said that everybody at the school was glad that his hard work paid off, adding that his class teacher, Ushashri Maddali, said that Nisarg is a role model for younger students. The teachers further said that he has been at the forefront of major school events and an active participant in activities such as inter-school competitions, TED Talks and national science olympiads, among others.
Tejal Amin, chairperson of the Navrachana Education Society, also said that he has made both the school and the entire state proud.
Among other toppers from Gujarat is Arya Anand (17), a student of KV, ONGC in Ahmedabad, who secured 99.98 percentile and AIR-313. Aiming for admission at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), he is set to appear for the JEE Advanced exam. His twin sister will also appear for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) scheduled on Sunday.
Due to the transferable job of their father, Ashutosh Ranjan, who is an income tax inspector, the twins have studied in various schools across the state.
When asked if he had any fear over appearing for the exam amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Arya said, “Health safety measures taken during the exams were appreciable. It was good that the exam was finally conducted.” Securing 100 percentile in physics, Arya said he wants to pursue engineering in computer science.
Another student from Gujarat, Harshil Safi secured 99.78 percentile. A student of Sheth C N, he appeared for both the JEE Mains exams conducted in January and September. “I want to pursue my engineering in computer science from IIT Madras,” said Harshil, who has been preparing for the engineering entrance examinations since he was in the eighth standard.
Another top scorer, Harsh Shah secured AIR-59 with 99.997 percentile. His previous score was 99.97 percentile. Dr Sanjay Shah, his father who is a gynaecologist, said, “He is aiming to get into an IIT if he performs just as well in the advanced exam.”
Niyati Mehta topped among the female candidates in Gujarat by securing AIR-120 with 99.99 percentile. Between both her attempts of JEE Mains, she secured better this time around.
“My previous score was 99.86 percentile,” she said, adding that she is preparing to crack the JEE advanced and get into an IIT. “I am yet to decide between engineering in computer science or research from IISC, Bangalore,” she added. Her father, Manish Mehta, works at ONGC while her mother, Sejal, is a housewife.
Over 38,100 candidates appeared from Gujarat for the JEE Main exam held between September 1-6. The candidates appeared in two online shifts; over 35,198 appeared for Paper-I and 2,969 appeared for Paper-II at 32 centres in 13 districts across the state.