Assam tea seller clears NEET in first attempt, set to take admission in AIIMS-Delhi
Barpeta (Assam), Feb 5: It was no mean task juggling studies and serving tea to customers at the shop run by his mother. Rahul Das (24), however, took the challenges in his stride and managed to do both. His hard work has finally paid off as the tea seller from Assam's Bajali district secured a seat at AIIMS-Delhi, having cleared NEET exam in the first attempt.
The journey wasn't an easy one. Das and his brother were raised by their mother, who was left alone to fend for herself and two sons by her husband some 11 years ago. Poverty forced Das to quit his studies after Class 12, but he did not give up on the dream to become a doctor.
Das said he would find time to study in between serving customers at his mother's shop in Patacharkuchi Chowk area of the district.
"I have seen my mother toil hard for us. We couldn't afford a helper at the shop. Since school, I made it a point to help her in some way or the other... I made tea and sold it, too. And as and when it was possible, I would sit down to study at the shop," he explained.
In 2015, he had cleared the higher secondary examination, and left studies for want of money.
However, his zeal for higher education prompted Das to join the Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology (CIPET), two years later, to pursue a diploma in plastic engineering.
Das passed with a distinction (85 per cent marks) after three years, and started work at a multi-national company in Guwahati as a 'quality engineer' in October 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"There was no job satisfaction at all... I always wanted to be a doctor. One of my cousins is a dental surgeon and he happened to be my inspiration. I decided to leave my job and begin preparations for NEET with whatever resources were available online as I had no money to buy books," he told PTI as customers lined up outside his shop to have a cup of piping hot tea.
Das, who has a burn injury on one of his hands, candidly said that he bagged the 12,068th position in NEET, but his Scheduled Caste (SC) and Person with Disabilities (PWD) certificates helped him get through AIIMS.
Summing up the conversation with PTI, the 24-year-old expressed gratitude to all those who have helped them financially or by other means during the family's hour of need.
"Maa's shop sits on a land owned by Mantu Kumar Sharma, who has a big hardware shop at Patacharkuchi Chowk. But he never took rent from us. In fact, he has now booked my tickets to Delhi.
"We reside on the campus surrounding district Deputy Commissioner Bharat Bhushan Devchoudhury's residence. He has helped us in several ways. Assam minister Ranjeet Kumar Dass visited our shop two days ago and handed over Rs 10,000 to me for immediate needs," he narrated.
Devchoudhury, when contacted, told PTI that the family lives on the campus of his ancestral home in Patacharkuchi, and he never charged rent for it.
"We are very proud of Rahul because he is the first from Bajali district to get a seat at AIIMS, New Delhi," the deputy commisioner said.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had on Friday announced that all education expenses of Das will be borne by the state government, Devchowdhury added.
Das is looking forward to a bright future in the national capital, where he would be spending the next few years pursuing medical education. His session is set to begin from June.
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Iran Foreign Minister Araghchi begins 3-day India visit
New Delhi (PTI): Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi began a three-day official visit to India on Wednesday, marking the first high-level diplomatic engagement from Tehran since the outbreak of the US-Israel war with Iran more than two months ago.
Araghchi is visiting India primarily to attend a two-day meeting of BRICS foreign ministers beginning Thursday.
The Iranian foreign minister is set to hold wide-ranging bilateral talks with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, focusing on the escalating crisis in West Asia.
The situation surrounding the Strait of Hormuz is expected to feature prominently. The Indian side is likely to press for the safe passage of remaining merchant vessels through the strategic waterway, according to people familiar with the matter.
Araghchi and other foreign ministers of the BRICS member states are scheduled to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.
"A very warm welcome to Foreign Minister of Iran, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, on his arrival in New Delhi for the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on 'X'.
The escalating crisis in West Asia and its impact on the global energy supply chain are expected to dominate deliberations at the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting.
India, as the chair of BRICS, is hosting the conclave of the foreign ministers ahead of the annual summit of the grouping in September.
It will be interesting to see if the foreign ministerial conclave manages to produce a consensus statement on the conflict in West Asia.
Sharp differences among the member states over the US-Israel war on Iran stalled India's efforts to build a consensus position on the conflict during a meeting of the grouping's deputy foreign ministers and special envoys on Middle East and North America last month.
No consensus statement on the conflict could be reached largely due to differences between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran. The two neighbouring countries have sparred in recent weeks over Iran's alleged attacks on energy infrastructure in the UAE.
"The active presence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in mechanisms such as BRICS represents a strategic choice to strengthen genuine multilateralism, expand equitable cooperation, and participate in shaping a more just order in international relations," Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on 'X'.
"The BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi can be an important opportunity for dialogue on the future of Global South cooperation, reforming international economic governance, developing independent trade, strengthening financial and banking ties, and reducing countries' dependence on discriminatory and unilateral mechanisms," he said.
Gharibabadi said Iran, with its geopolitical, energy, transit, scientific, and human capacities, can play an effective role in the BRICS agenda for balanced development, economic security, regional connectivity, and amplifying the voice of independent countries.
The Iranian deputy foreign minister is in New Delhi for the BRICS meeting.
"In this path, opposition to America's unilateral coercive measures and their illegal and anti-development effects is an inseparable part of defending economic justice and the rights of nations to development," he said.
After the West Asia conflict escalated, Iran urged India, as the current BRICS chair, to leverage its "independent role" to halt the US-Israel hostilities against Iran.
Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (liquefied natural gas).
BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the UAE, with Indonesia joining in 2025.
It has emerged as an influential grouping as it brings together 11 major emerging economies of the world, representing around 49.5 per cent of the global population, around 40 per cent of the global GDP and around 26 per cent of the global trade.
The BRICS foreign ministers held their last meeting on the margins of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 80) in September 2025.
