Mine worker’s son cracks JEE, money in way of IIT dream
Kumar, son a Dalit mine worker in Jodhpur who cracked the JEE Advanced exam, hopes to study mechanical engineering at IIT-Mumbai.
The 17-year-old, a resident of Khudiyana village, has become an epitome of inspiration for students from impoverished Dalit families . Kumar secured an All India Rank of 128 in the scheduled caste category of the IIT-JEE Advanced 2017, results of which were declared on June 11. He had scored 79% marks in his Class 12 board exams of the Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education.
“I worked as a construction worker earlier, but now due to my failing health, I can no longer crush stones in quarries,” says his father, Bhagwanaram, 50, who doubles up a part-time construction worker to run a family of seven.
The family owns a seven beegha agricultural plot , which he has leased on share cropping arrangement to augment the family’s income, he adds.
About the challenges of educating his five sons of whom Kumar is the youngest, he says, “I earn less than ₹ 70,000 a year while my eldest son has now started to run an e-mitra kiosk to share the responsibility of running the family and educating the other siblings.”
Kumar mother, Kamla Devi (46) too helps by finding work under the National Rural Employment Gaurantee Scheme. “My parents have lived in a mud house for most of their lives but they never let any of us feel the financial crunch ,” says Kumar.
Kumar’s journey began three years back, when he scored 85% marks in the Class 10 board exams, following which a school teacher advised him to take coaching classes in Kota.
“My father arranged money for my education by taking loans, which helped me crack the JEE exams.”
Kumar studied at the Allen Career Coaching Institute in Kota for the last two years for which the institute provided 50% concession in fees.
Despite cracking the JEE Advanced, Kumar and his family is now facing a new challenge — arranging money for admission at IIT, his accommodation and education. “Even if I have to borrow more money, I will ensure that my son studies at IIT,” says Bhagwanaram.