Breakdown fails to break students resolve to join IIT

Updated on: Saturday, May 28, 2011

August 2010 is a blank for Tushar Agrawal. He does not even have a bleak recollection of where he was or what he did all through that month. Hostel mates say they often saw the 18 year old talk to the walls, flinch at sudden noise from the neighbouring room and twitch if he didn’t top a test. This year was Tushar’s last attempt at the Joint Entrance Exam. In 2010, his all India rank was not good enough to land him in a popular engineering stream. He came to Mumbai from Akola, seeking coaching and professional help to prepare for JEE.

“Tushar is a bright child. What I noticed about him was that his fundamental concepts were clear. I am happy that he can join an IIT despite the huge setback,” says Praveen Tyagi who coached him free for the entrance test. But somewhere along 2011, the stress broke him. His parents, both doctors who practise in Akola, took him back home.

Tushar turned to engineering for his love for math. “I can’t rote learn. You need to do that to be a doctor. I feel everything in life has logic and once you get that, you’re clear. I don’t remember what I went through. I know I used to talk a lot, most times to myself. I think I got very anxious about my rank,” says Tushar.

In December, Tushar pulled himself together and came back to Mumbai. He says the months after that were the toughest: Catching up with the time lost when he was unwell. In this edition of the JEE, Tushar’s score improved a tad bit; he stood 6, 676. He will now go on to join an IIT.

Breakdown fails to break students resolve to join IIT

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