Bhubaneswar/Jharsuguda: Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari on Tuesday felicitated meritorious students of Jharsuguda district who excelled in the annual High School Certificate (HSC) Examination and praised the district administration’s education initiatives for the remarkable academic success achieved this year.
Addressing a grand felicitation ceremony organised at the Jharsuguda Engineering School Auditorium through virtual mode from Lok Seva Bhawan, Pujari said talented and educated youth would play a key role in building a developed and “New Odisha”. He urged students to dream big and work hard towards achieving their goals.
“Schools are man-making factories and teachers are their skilled craftsmen. There is a need for a strong roadmap to ensure quality education reaches every student,” the minister said while appreciating the efforts of teachers, guardians and the district administration.
The event was organised to honour students who secured A1 grades by scoring above 90 per cent marks in the HSC examination. A total of 78 students from the district secured A1 grades while 383 students obtained A2 grades, reflecting Jharsuguda’s impressive academic performance this year.
District Education Officer Radhakanta Gartia said several innovative education initiatives contributed to the district’s success. Under the ‘Unmesh’ programme, meritorious students scoring above 60 per cent in Class IX examinations were provided special coaching through residential camps conducted by senior teachers. Teachers also mentored students individually during their preparation.
He added that remedial classes for weaker students were conducted across schools beyond regular teaching hours, helping improve learning outcomes and examination performance.
Jharsuguda district recorded a pass percentage of 97.89 this year, significantly higher than previous years. The district also secured the top position in Odisha in the Performance Grading Index and ranked fourth in overall HSC pass percentage.
Among the top performers, Naman Pradhan of Government High School, Municipal High School (Ekatali), and Sudam Behera of Sri Aurobindo Purnanga Shiksha Kendra jointly secured the district’s top position with 96.33 per cent marks. Both students figured among the top five achievers in Odisha.
While Naman expressed his ambition to crack IIT-JEE and later join the Indian Civil Services, Sudam said he aims to qualify NEET and become a doctor.
Bargarh MP Pradeep Purohit and Jharsuguda MLA and District Planning Board Chairman Tankadhar Tripathy attended the programme as guests of honour and felicitated the students with certificates and gifts.
Commissioner-cum-Secretary of the School and Mass Education Department Dr N Thirumala Naik, former Jharsuguda collector Aboli Sunil Naravane and Odisha Power Generation Corporation Ltd managing director Kedar Ranjan Pandu joined the programme virtually.
Jharsuguda collector Kunal Motiram Chavan, education officials, teachers, guardians and students were present at the event.
