With NEET they pass the life examination: Two cousin sisters from a family of Rajasthan goatherds, the son of an electrician from Meerut, and the daughters of a taxi driver from Dehradun and a truck mechanic from Agra. All of them have a background of poverty, but they have overcome resource disparities to achieve their utmost academic potential. They passed the medical school entrance examination NEET– UG 2023 and will, in time, become the first physicians in their families or perhaps their extended clans.
With NEET they pass the life examination
RITU YADAV, AIR: 8,179; KAREENA YADAV, AIR: 1,621
Ritu Yadav, 19, and Kareena Yadav, 20, are from a family of goatherds in the Jaipur village of Nangal Tulsidas, Jamwa Ramgarh. They passed NEET this year, a remarkable accomplishment for a family that previously had only one graduate, Thakarsi Yadav, a retired science teacher who pushed his nieces to realise his goal of having a family member “wearing a stethoscope.” “Ever since I failed the medical entrance exam in 1983-84.
I’ve had a dream of seeing my family’s children become doctors,” said Thakarsi, who trained his two nieces and then enrolled them in a coaching institute for seven months. The primary source of income for Kareena’s father, Nanchu Ram, and Ritu’s father, Hanuman Sahay, is two bighas of land and a few goats.
29 SHIVAM PATEL, AIR
This year, when 17-year-old Shivam Patel, the son of an electrician in Meerut, secured the 29th rank in the National Eligibility and Eligibility Test (NEET), it was “a dream come true” for the young man whose favourite film is a tale of the triumph of the human spirit, ‘The Shawshank Redemption. The household of Shivam resides in a two-room house on a busy road. Even the constant hum of traffic couldn’t distract him when he was studying for lengthy hours, such is his determination. Mother Seema, father Arvind Patel, and his sister, a nurse at a Lucknow hospital, supported him. Mother Seema predicted that he would be the first in his family to become a physician.
NEET-UG: Physics score over bio for tie-breaker
AARTI JHA, AIR: 192
This year, Aarti Jha, the 21-year-old daughter of an Agra vehicle mechanic, ranked 192nd on the NEET. “I cannot convey how happy I am in words. This outcome gave me the fortitude to dismiss all my nightmares. My coaching centre was 17 kilometres distant from my home. Every day, I walked 3 kilometres to save Rs 10. I used to give tuition courses to school students to supplement my income,” she said.
Arti and her parents and three siblings reside in the Agra neighbourhood of Sewla. Vishambhar Jha stated that his daughter has made his wish come true. “I earn approximately Rs 25,000 per month, and I must spend a considerable sum on my children’s education. Ride a 14-year-old bicycle to work every day. I will do whatever it takes to provide my children with a superior education.”
JASNEET KAUR, AIR: 36,574
Jasneet Kaur, a native of Dehradun, scored 588 out of 720 on her second attempt at the National Eligibility and Eligibility Test (NEET) this year, placing her at 36,574 on the all-India list. “I took a scholarship examination administered by Baluni classes and was in the super 50 batch for which the coaching expenses were waived. The daughter of a taxi driver and a housewife remarked, “I am pleased with my result this time and eager to begin the admissions process.” She stated, “My family encouraged me to pursue my dreams.”
