JEE: Panchkula boy 6th, two more Tricity boys make it to top 100

A resident of Sector 15, Panchkula, Shubham did his matriculation from Bhavan Vidyalaya, Panchkula, with 10 CGPA and senior secondary from Sri Guru Gobind Singh Collegiate Public School, Sector 26, with 96.7 per cent marks. He made up his mind to get into IIT when he was in class VIII and since then, all the extra-curricular activities, had come to a halt. He wishes to pursue research after studying computer science and engineering at IIT-Mumbai.

Asked about his ultimate goal, Shubham said, “My four years in the IIT will be a deciding factor. At present, I am just focusing on two things, my admission into IIT-Mumbai and, secondly, to get a gold medal in the International Chemistry Olympiad, in which I will be representing India from July 20 to July 29.”

He has cleared the Indian National Mathematics Olympiad, the Indian National Astronomy Olympiad, had got a KVPY scholarship in class XI and an NTSE scholarship in class VIII.

Son of Lt Colonel Ashwin Goel, a veterinarian posted in Ludhiana, and mother Prem Lata Goel, a teacher, Shubham said his parents and a seven-year-old sister were his biggest inspiration. He said that it was only two months before the mains exam that he started studying with much focus, spending as many as 14 hours a day. “I expected my rank somewhere on the borderline of 10, but never expected it to be the sixth,” he said.

Shubham said, “In the past three-four years, I have changed my mind four times in regard to my career. First, I wanted to be an astronaut, then I wanted to be an IAS officer, then a pilot and finally I somehow made up my mind to pursue IIT.”

Aryan, a resident of Sector 46 who got the 71st rank, did his higher secondary from St Anne’s Convent School and senior secondary from Sri Guru Gobind Senior Secondary School, Sector 35, with 92.6 per cent marks.

Sharing his success mantra, he said, “One should stay motivated, and regular studies are a must. For me, my motivation was my passion and I believe that it’s only the passion which helps you crack these exams.”

An online gamer, Aryan wants to open his own software company after studying computer science and engineering at IIT-Delhi. His father Sanjay Kumar Garg, who is posted in Nepal at SJVN Ltd, and mother Sudha Garg, who gives mathematics coaching to class XI and XII students, are his inspiration.

Gurtej, who has got the 80th rank, did his matriculation from DPS, Sector 40, with 10 CGPA and senior secondary from AKSIPS-41 with 93.8 per cent marks. Gurtej’s father B S Sohi, who is a chemistry teacher at DPS school,  helped him not only in his JEE exam but also in his CBSE Olympiads.

“I believe that one should follow one’s heart because the actual determination comes from there,” said Gurtej who wants to “see myself as CEO of some big company like Infosys”.

The exam results will determine admissions to the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and National Institutes of Technology as well as other Centrally funded institutes.

In JEE, 40 per cent weightage is given to class XII exam results while JEE main scores carry 60 per cent weightage.