ISC Topper from Christian Brothers School

Not very studious yet 99.2%
- Record-breaking ISC topper from Calcutta school
CHANDREYEE CHATTERJEE



Calcutta, May 20: Calcutta finally has a national champion.

Subhojit Ghosh would read Harry Potter, listen to Nirvana and Fossils, be on Facebook for hours and when in the mood bury himself in textbooks — only to emerge as the highest scorer in the history of Indian School Certificate (ISC) exam.

The 18-year-old with a soft voice and shy smile today scored a record 99.25 per cent in his school-leaving exam.

His score card? Math 100; computer science 100; physics 99, English 98; chemistry 94; Bengali 92; environmental science 97.

“The 99.25 score (English and best three) in ISC is an all-time record in the history of the council. Never in the past has a student scaled such heights,” said Gerry Arathoon, the additional secretary and officiating chief executive and secretary of the Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations.

The student of St. Joseph’s College on B.B. Ganguly Street in central Calcutta insisted he was “never very studious”. “The hours I put in would depend on my mood and could range from anything between two hours and 20 hours,” said Subhojit, with a shrug.

So, the record score came as something of a surprise for the boy from College Street. “I was expecting something around 96-97 per cent; 99.25 per cent is way beyond my expectations,” said the teenager who had scored 96 per cent in his ICSE.

Subhojit, who according to his father Subhashish Ghosh was “slightly tense” in the morning, logged in to the council’s website at 11am, with mother Sujata and sister Suchismita, 15, for company.

“At 11.15am, he called me and said in an incredulous voice that he had scored 99.25 per cent. He said he couldn’t believe it but that is what the website was showing,” recounted Subhashish, who ran to the nearest sweet shop and then rushed back home from work.

Proud parents Subhashish and Sujata are with a direct-selling company. “If you asked me what he did apart from studying, I would have to say ‘what not’!” smiled the father.

When he wasn’t busy listening to Bengali or English rock, Subhojit was on Facebook, playing games, leaving wall posts or playing random quizzes.

“I am not very politically aware and have not followed the elections very closely, but I do like Rahul Gandhi a lot because he is young,” said Subhojit.

Kid sister Suchismita, Class IX student of Loreto Dharamtala, doesn’t have to look so far for a young leader. “She is so proud of her brother. I know this result will inspire her as well,” said mother Sujata.

ISC conquered, Subhojit has now set his sights on studying aerospace engineering in IIT Kanpur. “I love physics so my first choice is aerospace engineering but then I also like mechanics so I would not mind studying mechanical engineering. If IIT doesn’t happen, then BITS Pilani.”

The not-so-studious topper is also clear about what he will never do — “study computers and leave my country”.

The above is another example of the way the Christian brothers run their schools.
Although Subhojit is not from Goethals but he makes us all proud of the Christian Brothers.
His feat is especially commendable since he has achieved this in Kolkata which is always rocking with Left Front and Mamata disturbances.
Further, he was not a book worm as he caried out a number of other extra-curricular activities.
I would say, he is truly God-gifted with an abundance of talents.
Congratulations, Subjojit.

Radheshyam