Villager who cracked IIT, returns home to coach talented poor
Born to a carpenter in a dusty village called Jobner in Rajasthan, this boy never thought he could crack IIT. Now that he has done that, electrical engineer Rajesh Jangid has decided to sell his metaphorical Ferrari and become a teacher in his village. His dream; to have more IITians in his homeland.
Jangid, a Hindi medium student since childhood, has completed electrical engineering in IIT-Gandhinagar with good grades. And here lies the twist; instead of a high flying career as an IITian, Jangid has opted to go back to his village and open a coaching centre! "Along with classmate Sanjay Gill, we are setting up a centre for talented but poor students in my village. We will start with improving their language skills and prepare them for IIT," he explained.
Jangid's father, a daily wage worker since 18, has been earning just about Rs 8000 since years now. Jangid studied in a government school in village Kodi, and secured 89% in class 8. That ensured a place in a better school at Jobner, where he again topped in class 10. Getting a scholarship, Jangid hit a home run by coming sixth in the entire state board with a 95% in class 12.
However, everytime the carpenter's boy did well academically, destiny wanted something else. "I had a fire burning in my belly but had no idea about entrance exams. It was my physics teacher who asked me to go to Kota and prepare for IIT. I cried, made a scene, didn't eat for weeks, but there was no way my father agreed. An year's tuition fee at a Kota coaching centre comes at Rs 70,000, and my father put his foot down," he said.
Like a guardian angel, Jangid's uncle agreed to fund his tuition fee. "I got a scholarship from one of the top centres in Kota and the fee was halved," Jangid said. A year's struggle resulted in him getting through IIT-Gn.
Money has been a factor all his life, and that is why Jangid refuses to let it dominate his future as well. "I want to succeed but not at the cost of my dreams. I want to create more IITians from Jobner. We have subsidized tuition fees for those who can pay and made it completely free for those who cant," he said. Jangid has rented a room in his village and will be holding a small entrance exam to select his students this month.
Jangid, a Hindi medium student since childhood, has completed electrical engineering in IIT-Gandhinagar with good grades. And here lies the twist; instead of a high flying career as an IITian, Jangid has opted to go back to his village and open a coaching centre! "Along with classmate Sanjay Gill, we are setting up a centre for talented but poor students in my village. We will start with improving their language skills and prepare them for IIT," he explained.
Jangid's father, a daily wage worker since 18, has been earning just about Rs 8000 since years now. Jangid studied in a government school in village Kodi, and secured 89% in class 8. That ensured a place in a better school at Jobner, where he again topped in class 10. Getting a scholarship, Jangid hit a home run by coming sixth in the entire state board with a 95% in class 12.
However, everytime the carpenter's boy did well academically, destiny wanted something else. "I had a fire burning in my belly but had no idea about entrance exams. It was my physics teacher who asked me to go to Kota and prepare for IIT. I cried, made a scene, didn't eat for weeks, but there was no way my father agreed. An year's tuition fee at a Kota coaching centre comes at Rs 70,000, and my father put his foot down," he said.
Like a guardian angel, Jangid's uncle agreed to fund his tuition fee. "I got a scholarship from one of the top centres in Kota and the fee was halved," Jangid said. A year's struggle resulted in him getting through IIT-Gn.
Money has been a factor all his life, and that is why Jangid refuses to let it dominate his future as well. "I want to succeed but not at the cost of my dreams. I want to create more IITians from Jobner. We have subsidized tuition fees for those who can pay and made it completely free for those who cant," he said. Jangid has rented a room in his village and will be holding a small entrance exam to select his students this month.
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