Separated by the branches they studied in, there is one common thread that binds II PU toppers who scored more than 590 out of 600 marks. All of them felt the sting when they saw that they had lost out on securing the perfect score after losing marks in English.
Ramyashree K A, a student of Vijaya PU College on RV Road, is the Commerce topper with 596 marks. She scored hundred per cent in all her subjects, except English, in which she lost four marks. “I am a little disappointed. I put in a lot of effort and was asked to refer to the best answers from previous years. I think I lost marks in letter writing,” she said.
An aspiring chartered accountant, Ramyashree said she did not expect to top the state in her stream. “I knew I would end up in the top ten though. All students have the potential to do well, provided they have good teachers. Fortunately, I had good teachers,” said Ramyashree, daughter of BEML engineer Ananthkumar and homemaker Gowri, who are residents of Thyagaraja Nagar.
Science topper D Vasudha, a student of Sadvidya College in Mysore, scored 594 marks. She lost five marks in English and one in Biology.
She was in Bangalore on Thursday to write Manipal University’s entrance examination. “I was writing the exam when the results were announced. I was overwhelmed,” said Vasudha, an aspiring doctor. Vasudha took tuition classes and studied for almost ten hours everyday. “I was confused between engineering and medicine. Now that my results are out, I want to become a doctor.”
Samanvita Sastry from Deeksha Chetana, Yelahanka, admitted that it was very hard to score in English. “I lost six marks in English,” said Samanvita, who scored 591 out of 600.
“Even last year’s topper got 94 in English. Not many have done well this time.” A computer science enthusiast, Samanvita aspires to join an Indian Institute of Technology or National Institute of Technology.
Losing nine marks in English cost Sheethal R Holla the top spot in Commerce. This Jain PU College student scored 591 marks.
“I am pretty disappointed with this. It was my favourite subject and I want to know where I went wrong.” Sheethal dedicated two hours a day to prepare for exams and aspires to become a chartered accountant.
Raichur’s problems in the education sector seem to have ended after a boy from a sleepy village in the district secured top place in Arts stream by scoring 574 marks.
A student of Infant Jesus Junior College in Raichur, Naveen, son of Venkatesh, a labourer in Talmari village, emerged a topper without any sort of special coaching.Naveen said the encouragement from his teachers, help from his friends and assistance from his uncle’s son Veeresh helped him score well.
He said one of the main problems students from remote villages face is their lack of fluency in English. “I want to be an English teacher and help students from villages who find it difficult to learn the language,” he added.
More than 3.20 lakh students took the II PU exams in English medium, of whom 2.09 lakh passed.