How Practice, Will Power Helped Son of TN Labourer Clear JEE in First Attempt

Consistent practice and determination have helped P Arun Kumar, son of a laborer at Tamil Nadu's Trichy to clear the IIT JEE Advanced exam 2021 in his first attempt. Image used for representational purposes.

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook/IIT Hyderabad)

Consistent practice and determination have helped P Arun Kumar, son of a labourer at Tamil Nadu's Trichy to clear the highly competitive IIT JEE Advanced exam 2021 in his first attempt.

The 17-year-old has secured an all-India rank of 12,175 and an OBC-NCL rank of 2,503 in the exam and is all set to enter the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad soon, reported The Times of India.

Upon hearing the news, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin announced that the state will bear all his educational expenses. The CM also reportedly met the boy and his father and appreciated the former's efforts.

How Arun Achieved This Feat?

Until two years ago, Arun didn't even know about IITs. But his life took a new turn after the state's school education department and the district administration in Trichy selected him for JEE coaching through an entrance test in 2019.

Called IGNITTE, the initiative is offered by an organisation run by a group of students from NIT Trichy, who help underprivileged students in cracking competitive exams.

Living in a tiled roof house along with two sisters and grandparents, distractions were aplenty for Arun. Besides, he was faced with severe hardships as his family reeled under financial constraints. His father N Ponnalagan works as a helper at restaurants and does other odd jobs to make ends meet. Ponnalagan hardly manages to get a monthly income of Rs 10,000.

But none of this deterred Arun from clearing the entrance test conducted by IGNITTE.

'I Did Not Get Myself Distracted by Difficulties & Financial Issues'

Speaking to the publication, Arun said that "quality coaching, consistent practice", and the belief that his family had on him helped him in clearing the exam. "I did not get myself distracted by our difficulties and financial issues," he said.

Amutha Bharathi, Arun's school head mistress said that he did not stop learning even after classes went online post the pandemic.

(With inputs from Times of India)