Gritty show by Corporation school students

5,051 of them clear Plus-Two examination braving challenges on multiple fronts.

When the floods hit Chennai, P. Swapna studied under candlelight, standing in knee-deep water at her home in North Chennai.

On Tuesday, she emerged a topper among corporation school students, scoring 1,166 marks in her Plus-Two examinations.

“Power supply was disrupted during the floods. But she continued to work hard,” said her father R. Paramasivan, a fisherman from Ernavur.

At least 20 of the 66 classmates of Swapna affected by the floods emerged successful in the examination. “Our teachers distributed new books and study materials. They took care of us like their own children. It helped us a lot,” said Swapna, who wants to become a chartered accountant.

Many of her friends, such as J. Kalaivani and M. Maheswari, lost all their belongings in the floods. They worked hard and are happy that their contribution has helped their school on Buddha Street clock a pass percentage of 87.1 per cent.

M. Ramalakshmi, whose father V. Muthalagan is a daily-wage labourer, secured the second rank with a score of 1,157. “Our teachers played a key role. They motivated us to work hard,” said Ramalakshmi. She was undeterred by the floods that affected her school. G. Bhuvaneswari of Corporation School at CIT Nagar also secured 1,157 marks, sharing the second rank. R. Dharani of Corporation School, Saidapet; S. Jothi Priya of Corporation School, Koyambedu; and C. Sanjana of Corporation School, Pulla Avenue shared the third rank, scoring 1,155 marks.

The worst affected

“Schools in Saidapet, West Mambalam and Virugambakkam had very low pass percentage due to the floods. The Saidapet Boys Higher Secondary School has a pass percentage of 51.8,” said a Chennai Corporation official.

Corporation school students registered an overall pass percentage of 86.21. As many as 5,051 of the 5,859 students in 32 schools cleared the examinations, with girls recording a pass percentage of 91.09 and boys 78.15.

100 per cent pass

Three corporation schools – one in Koyambedu, one on Lloyds Road and another Subbarayan Street – recorded a pass percentage of 100.

The pass percentage of 23 schools is over 80 and nine schools recorded less than 80. One student secured centum in mathematics, 12 students in commerce, 24 students in accountancy and four students in business maths.

As many as 33 of the boys and 75 girls registered on the rolls did not appear for the examination.