Srinagar: Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Tuesday met Kashmiri students of Super 40 programme who cleared their Joint Entrance Examination – Advanced (JEE – Advanced) this year.
Super 40 Programme, known as “Super 30” in 2013-14, started with the aim of coaching 30 students from Kashmir preparing for IIT main exams. In 2016, the number rose to 40.
JEE – Advanced, formerly the Indian Institutes of Technology Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE), is an annual engineering college entrance examination in India. It is used as the sole admission test by the 23 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
General Rawat congratulated the students, who cleared the exam, and hoped the students would serve Kashmir.
Stressing that generations have been destroyed due to unrest in Jammu and Kashmir, Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat exhorted students in the state to choose laptops and books to help end the cycle of violence.
Addressing a group of Kashmiri students who were supported by the Army and have cleared the IIT entrance examination, he said their success was not an easy feat and and they have now become a shining example for the youth in the Valley.
Referring to his stints in Jammu and Kashmir, which has in the recent past seen rising incident of stone pelting, Rawat said his first posting in the state was in 1981-82 when the “situation was good”.
The situation started deteriorating during his second posting between 1991 and 1993, the Army chief said, noting that he also had stints in J-K from 2006-2008 and then from 2010-12.
“I have seen the situation. How many generations will see this gunfire and smoke from explosives?” he asked.
“Generations have been destroyed due to this. The fear that has set in the mind of people of Kashmir and the youth… (that) a militant or the security forces will come.
“So you have militants on one side and security forces on the other. How long will we stay in this atmosphere. We have to put an end to it. We wish that peace is restored there and we carry out our daily work without any problem,” Rawat said.
He also said that the recent spell of unrest has led to decline in tourism in the Valley.
“Kashmir is heaven. We have to again bring it to that level which was there before. The world flocks to see the Valley, but people are not able to come because of the tension,” he said.
He also asked students to return to their roots after they complete their studies and help in the development of the state to alleviate the hardships faced by the people.
“They (the youth) should either have a laptop or a book. Whatever time they get they should devote to studies,” Rawat said.
“Few amongst you will become the District Magistrates and SDMs. And you will be able to help the other children,” he told students.
Twenty six 26 boys and two girls from J&K cracked IIT-JEE Mains Exam.
One of the students of programme, Nikhat said that the coaching helped her to achieve her dream of pursuing engineering.
“I am planning to do engineering. I was in the coaching programme. The faculty was good in Delhi and it helped us to prepare for the exams,” she said.
Major General R P Kalitha, under whose supervision this initiative is being conducted, lauded the Kashmiri students for their exemplary handwork and dedication towards their studies.
Gen Bipin Rawat met students from Army’s “Super 40” coaching initiative.
“The Youth of Kashmir are very intelligent and hard working, and with the facilities that were provided, gradually the results also improved from 2013. This year in the main exams, 26 boys and two girls cleared and in the Advanced phase, nine boys cleared the exam.
I think it is a great result since the institute is only three-year- old,” he said.
General Kalitha further said that the programme was gearing up to intake 50 students, including 45 boys and five girls.
The Army, along with Centre for Social Responsibility and Leadership (CSRL), conducts ‘Super 40’ programme in Jammu and Kashmir. Funded by PSU Petronet LNG Limited, the aim of the programme is to train students in the state to help them clear IIT entrance test.
The girls were coached at Noida and boys in Srinagar.
