Over 300 students from govt schools in Punjab qualify JEE Mains 2026: Education minister
Chandigarh (PTI): Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains on Saturday said 305 students from government schools qualified in their first attempt of the joint entrance examination (JEE) Mains 2026.
This number reflects an increase of 63 per cent from last year's 187 successful candidates, he said describing the achievement as a defining moment for the state's school education system.
Bains shared that five students from his constituency Sri Anandpur Sahib also cracked the prestigious examination.
He announced that the government will organise a special three-week residential training camp to prepare the qualified students for JEE Advance, ensuring they receive focused guidance for the next stage.
"This feat marks a moment of immense pride for our entire school education department. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to all our dedicated teachers. The recent JEE Mains Phase 1 results showcased an outstanding performance by the Punjab government schools, with 305 students cracking the competitive engineering exam," Bains said.
This feat represents a remarkable 63 per cent increase from last year's 187 qualifiers, he said.
"Achieving such a significant milestone in just one year is a testament to the transformative power of our Punjab 'Sikhya Kranti' initiative. We are committed to further accelerating our progress," the state education minister said.
He also shared that Bhavishya, a Class 12 non-medical student from the School of Eminence in Amritsar secured an impressive 98.182 percentile.
His father runs a mobile repair shop and his mother works as a tailor.
"Despite financial constraints, his determination to pursue engineering and uplift his family remained unshaken. With strong school support and disciplined preparation, he achieved outstanding success," he said.
He further informed that Dilkhush Jha, a government school student from Bathinda, scored 95.091 percentile in JEE Mains.
With his father being a labourer and mother a homemaker, and an annual family income of Rs 1.2 lakh, he relied on self-study.
Similarly, Priyanka Sharma, a science student from the School of Eminence, Sangrur, secured a 96.44 percentile in JEE Mains while simultaneously preparing for NEET.
Bains said no other state government has matched this scale of achievement in government schools.
He congratulated all 305 students and their parents, and thanked the teachers for making what he described as a historic day for Punjab's government school system.
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Nitish Kumar's son Nishant among 32 to take oath as Bihar ministers
Patna (PTI): In a major expansion of the Cabinet of Bihar's first BJP-led government, JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar's son Nishant Kumar and 31 others took oath as ministers on Thursday in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Altogether 32 leaders, drawn from all constituents of the five-party NDA in the state, were administered the oath of office by Governor Lt Gen (Retd) Syed Ata Hasnain at a grand ceremony that was also attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union Health Minister J P Nadda and BJP president Nitin Nabin.
Prominent inductees included Nishant Kumar, the son of JD(U) president Nitish Kumar, who stepped down as chief minister last month to enter the Rajya Sabha.
The BJP, which is the single largest party in the 243-member assembly with 89 MLAs, has 15 ministers, who took oath on Thursday.
Most of the inductees were those who were part of the Nitish Kumar cabinet formed in November last year after the NDA stormed back to power in the assembly polls.
The JD(U) is represented by a total of 15 ministers, 13 of whom took the oath at the Gandhi Maidan on Thursday. Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav had taken oath in April along with Samrat Choudhary and were designated as deputy chief ministers.
Sanjay Kumar Singh and Sanjay Kumar Paswan, both from the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) headed by Union minister Chirag Paswan, are back as ministers, and so are Santosh Kumar Suman and Deepak Prakash, sons of Union minister Jitan Ram Manjhi of the Hindustani Awam Morcha and Upendra Kushwaha of the Rashtriya Lok Morcha, respectively.
