GUWAHATI, May 30 � A jubilant atmosphere prevailed in the historic Cotton College after declaration of the Higher Secondary results today. Though the premier institution could not achieve the top three ranks either in Science or Arts streams, yet with eight rank holders, highest in Guwahati, and the results fairly above the State average, the college has reasons to rejoice.
Seven students of the Cotton College Science stream and one from the Arts stream secured positions, whereas 258 students in Science and 86 in Arts got star marks. Overall, 98 per cent students succeeded in Science and 100 per cent in Arts. Last year the success rate was 99 pc and 98.06 pc respectively.
This year�s Higher Secondary results once again highlighted the strong emergence of local institutions in districts like Golaghat, Sivasagar, Bongaigaon, Nagaon, Dibrugarh and North Lakhimpur etc., from where the students excelled in this decisive examination.
Acknowledging the trend, the Cotton College Principal Dr Nirada Devi said that it was desirable to have 10+2 at the school level and colleges must put thrust on degree level education.
�Rank adds glamour to the results but is not the parameter to judge the performance of the institution.
�Earlier, the top rank holders in metric used to opt for the Cotton College invariably but it is not so anymore. Competent institutions fortifying students locally is a healthy trend as all sorts of guidance including parental supervision is required at a crucial age of 16-17 years,� she said. She, however, also admitted that the Cotton College as an institution was undergoing a transition period and some sorts of pressure prevailed upon it as it was under three academic administrations at HS, degree and university level.
A rank missed in the HSLC examinations encouraged Swaroop Nath to achieve the goal in the HS. With aggregate 469 marks, he is the 4th rank holder in Science. �I knew I will get a rank, because I worked hard with this goal in mind,� said Swaroop, whose next aim is to do B Tech from the IIT. A resident of Sarulah near Sualkuchi, Bhaskar Jyoti Das secured the 5th position. An 8th rank holder in the HSLC, Bhaskar too, like most of the Science students, wants to pursue a B Tech course. Ankur Jyoti Goswami, the 8th rank holder in the same stream said that regular studies and equal attention to all the subjects was the key to his success. A resident of Hengerabari, he attributed his success to the teachers and his family members.
Pankaj Kumar Purbey, who secured the 9th position, comes from a humble background, with his father engaged in wholesale vending. �I know that the higher education is going to be expensive, but my father even assured me today that I need not worry about the expenses. But, I know that we�ll have to take educational loan. For these reasons, I strongly believe that there must be adequate scholarship programmes to help the students in higher studies and if such schemes exist, it must be ensured that the students get to know about them in schools and colleges,� he said. With an aim to study in the NIT, Purbey also wants to take up research work in the future. Other rank holders in Science stream were Jyotisagar Medhi (9th), Sudeshdeep Sinha (10th) and Kallol Dey (10th).
Gunjan Sarma, the 10th rank holder in Arts, wants to pursue degree course with Economics honours. �There is no dearth of scope in Arts stream too and I advise all to pursue courses as per their interest and not as per general social perception,� said Sarma, who lives in North Jyotinagar near Chandmari.
Meanwhile, from Assam Jatiya Vidyalay, Bhanita Kalita secured 6th position in Arts stream. Bhanita expressed the desire to become a teacher in the future.
