18 students from one village crack JEE Advanced, including a girl

New Delhi: Bunkaron village near Gaya, Bihar is literally the village of ‘weavers’. But it has become the new buzz word for IIT aspirants. 18 students from this village have cracked JEE Advanced 2015 and have made it to the IITs this year. While the performance of IIT candidates from the village has been brilliant this year, the IIT feat is nothing new. At least 10 students from this village crack IIT JEE every year. However, for the first time, a girl from the village has made it to the IIT too this year.

Rahul Kumar, an IIT qualifier who achieved All India Rank (AIR) #980, said, “The environment of our village is ideal for JEE preparation. IIT aspirants from the village form a sort of study circle and find a quiet place to study together. We help each other out. Students who have cracked IIT earlier guide students on how to prepare for the exams. Seniors share study material and notes with their juniors too. There is an NGO in the village too which helps students preparing for engineering entrance exams.”

The village has about 10,000 people and almost every house has a power loom. Despite the noise, children interested in cracking JEE study for 3-10 hours a day and prepare for the exam. Yugeshwar Prasad, father of one of the successful candidates said, “About 15 years ago, villagers realized that the power loom business is on the decline and our children need education to get better opportunities. Since then, everyone makes an active effort to educate their kids.”