Seventeen-year-old Tiruchy youngster P Arunkumar who was recently in the news for scoring a high rank in the JEE (Advanced) test and securing a seat at IIT Hyderabad was invited to meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin in person on Thursday, October 28. Hailing from Karadipatti village in Tiruchy district, Arunkumar is the son of a labourer and studied in a government school. He scored an All India Rank of 12175 in JEE (Advanced) 2021 in his first attempt.
Stalin, when meeting the youngster in person, congratulated him and promised him that the Tamil Nadu government will bear his entire educational expenses. Abil Mahesh, state Minister for School Education and Tiruchy MLA, was also present on the occasion.
Taking to Twitter after the meeting, Stalin wrote that the state government will bear Arunkumar’s educational expenses and that “the government will always stand with those who embark on their journeys with idealism and dreams”.
அரசுப்பள்ளியில் படித்து ஐ.ஐ.டி பொறியியல் படிப்பில் சேரும் திருச்சி, கரடிப்பட்டி கிராமத்து மாணவர் அருண்குமாரை நேரில் அழைத்துப் பாராட்டினேன்!
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) October 28, 2021
எளிய பின்புலத்திலிருந்து தேர்ச்சி பெற்றுள்ள அவரின் கல்விச்செலவை அரசே ஏற்கும்.
இலட்சியக் கனவுகளுடன் பயணிப்பவர்களுக்கு அரசு துணை நிற்கும்! pic.twitter.com/IOEeT3fI4n
DMK youth wing secretary and Chepauk MLA Udhayanidhi Stalin also tweeted his congratulations to Arunkumar. Further, he thanked the Chief Minister for his announcement regarding bearing the educational expenses and added that it was certain that government school students will continue to achieve great heights.
திருச்சி செவல்பட்டி அரசு பள்ளியில் பயின்று IIT நுழைவுத் தேர்வில் வென்ற மாணவர் அருண்குமாருக்கு வாழ்த்துகள். அவரது கல்வி கட்டணத்தை அரசே ஏற்கும் என்று அறிவித்த மாண்புமிகு முதலமைச்சர் @mkstalin அவர்களுக்கு நன்றி. தமிழ்நாடு அரசுப்பள்ளி மாணவர்கள் மேன்மேலும் சாதிப்பார்கள் என்பது உறுதி. pic.twitter.com/mWtYKkuwRn
— Udhay (@Udhaystalin) October 28, 2021
Earlier this week, Arunkumar told TOI about his struggle to access coaching classes for JEE. Despite cracking an entrance test by the Tiruchy district administration that got him coaching from NIT-Tiruchy’s IGNITTE centre in 2019, he was initially unable to attend online classes properly since his village had poor network coverage. His father, N Ponnalagan, who does wage-labour jobs, did his best to ensure that Arunkumar could get an education, at least at a government school. Puthiya Thalaimurai TV had also reported that Arunkumar and his family, though delighted that he had secured a seat in ITT, Hyderabad, were concerned about the expenses. In light of this, the state government’s decision to fully bear the costs must come as a welcome relief.