A 16-year-old boy from Himayath Nagar in Hyderabad has scored 10 out of 10 grade points in all the six subjects in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) class X exams, whose results were announced on Saturday.
Pratham Agarwal, a student of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, had a stressful morning on Saturday as he was eagerly waiting for his results, says his father Naveen Agrawal.
“Till 10am, we were all restless. He had worked so hard, and we were expecting good marks. But the result days have always been the same for every child,” Naveen says.
“However, when the results were out, the website was so jammed that we had to wait for another half an hour, and it increased our restlessness,” he adds,
When the family finally saw the result though, it was a proud moment for all of them.
“We were expecting him to get over 9 points in all subjects, but the result was indeed a surprise for the whole family. This is the first time that someone has achieved full marks in all subjects. I am a proud father,” says Naveen.
Pratham, who has always been a topper in school, had worked extra hard on on Social Science subject. He used to spends hours locked up in his room to study, his parents say.
“He has always scored above 90% marks in all subjects except Social Science. He was scoring in the 80s in that subject alone. His teachers encouraged him and said he can do a lot better in that subject too, and can improve. I guess he needed that motivation from his teachers,” Naveen recalls.
Naveen says, he has never been very particular about marks.
“I do not believe in pressuring my son for 100% marks, though I have expected good marks from him. Initially when the website was jammed we were unable to see the marks, and the page only showed one portion, where it was written he has passed the exam. Honestly I was very happy,” Naveen says.
“But Pratham has always been very hardworking and determined. His biggest competition was himself. He always wants to do better than what he did earlier. We have just supported his efforts,” the proud father adds.
Pratham plans to study Engineering after school, but will start his preparation for Union Public Services Commission (UPSC) examinations as well, as he wants to be an IAS officer.
Unlike other children, Naveen says, his son has not asked for any gifts, which has put the proud father into a dilemma as to what to get him for the hard work.
“He is a very reserved boy. If I ask him he would say, ‘I don’t want anything’. But I have planned to buy a Honda Activa scooter for him. However, before that he has to learn driving,” says Naveen.