Small-town Boy Shapes Toppers in Kota

Ritesh Dahiya grew up in Kota long before it became the Mecca for engineering and medical aspirants. “Kota was a small town in the 90s. I used to be a very shy kid at school, and did not have many extracurricular interests apart from playing cricket with friends occasionally. I heard of IIT only in Class XI, when someone told me that it is a bada achha college,” reminiscences Dahiya.

After joining IIT-Delhi for a BTech in electrical engineering, Dahiya decided to change his image and totally immersed himself in extracurricular activities. He was able to emerge from his shell and was nicknamed “social animal”. He was the hostel representative in the Board of Student Welfare, IIT-Delhi and also became the general secretary of the Electrical Engineering Society of the college. This was where he began to realise his goals.

Baby-faced Dahiya joined HCL Technologies from campus and was sent on projects to the US very early in his career. It was a major change for the small town boy. It was there that he learnt to deal with international clients and managed stakeholder expectations, thereby building confidence. He spent about 13 years in the IT industry before deciding to venture out.

The trigger to move back to Kota was the demise of his father in 2011. Dahiya philosophised that life is more than just chasing money. Making a difference is what is really fulfilling. He started Turning Point Education in Kota, with his wife, Sandhya Chawla, who holds a master’s in human psychology, from Delhi University.

They spent more than a year studying published research on neuroscience, cognition and the gap between the needs of the student needs and what the academic system provides. This led them to develop workshops that have helped many students improve their exam results, sometimes by over 90 per cent. He says, “Listening to the same lectures and getting same notes, a student gets an edge only with self study. Even the JEE topper has only 24 hours in a day. It is the habits like time management, focus and concentration and productivity techniques that make a difference in exam preparation.” This year, all his students cleared the JEE (mains) examination. “Working with the youth is very fulfilling and helps me to remain young at heart,” says Dahiya. For details, visit www.turningpointeducation.in