Three students of South Dinajpur have found a place in the state merit list in the Madhyamik exams, results of which were declared today.

District Magistrate Nikhil Nirmal felicitated the students with gifts and certificates signed by the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Ankeet Sarkar from Banshihari High School under the Buniadpur municipality ranked 5th with 688 aggregate marks, while Md Tahenuzzaman from the Sihole High School under the Banshihari block ranked 8th with 685, and Rupsa Saha from Balurghat Girl’s High School ranked 10th with 683.

A total of 22443 students had appeared in the exams this year from the district. A total of 83.85 percent boys and 77.38 percent girls have cleared the examination.

Mr Sarkar is a resident of Banshbari village in Malda district and a student of the Banshihari High School, while his father is a school teacher in Banshihari.

“I had expected good results, but never thought I would find a place in the state ranking. When my name was declared, we were all pleasantly surprised. I thank my teachers and parents for this success,” Mr Sarkar said.

Rupsa Saha, on the other hand, became the first girl in two years to find a place in the top 10 from the Balurghat Girls’ School. Miss Saha’s father is a school teacher.

“I had decided to extend my study hours and make it a habit to study 12 hours a day. I want to become a doctor, as the present situation makes me feel that the nation needs more doctors,” she said.

“These three students who made it to the state merit list are our pride. We wish them every success in life,” DM, Mr Nirmal, said.

In North Dinajpur, Sunrit Singha, a student of the Raiganj Coronation HS School, shared the 6th position with some others in the state merit list of the Madhyamik examination under the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. He scored a whopping 687.

Mr Singha scored 96 in Bengali, 96 in English, 100 in Mathematics, 99 in Physical Science, 100 in Life Science, 98 in History and 98 in Geography. He is a resident of Birnagar in Raiganj, and his father Suvodeep Singha is the headmaster of a government school, while his mother Puspo Das Singha is also an assistant teacher in a government school. Mr Singh said he wants to become an engineer in the future.

“Sunrit was always a brilliant student. We are proud of his brilliant results,” the Headmaster of the Raiganj Coronation HS School, Subhendu Mukharjee, said.