NEET UG topper 2024: Meet Bihar boy Tathagat Awatar, whose success mantra is to try and try until you succeed | Competitive Exams
The National Testing Agency (NTA) had announced the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET UG) 2024 results on June 4. Among those who emerged victorious is Bihar boy Tathahgat Awatar, who scored a full 720/720.
He is, in fact, among the 67 candidates who bagged the top spot with the perfect score. Now the question that one might ask is, how did Tathagat prepare and top the examination?
Team Hindustan Times caught up with Tathagat to learn more about this success journey. Speaking to HT, Tathagat delved into many important aspects – from his success mantra to sharing preparation tips with aspirants. He also explained how online classes could come in handy for the numerous students who opt to sit for the prestigious exam every year.
Notably, this was Tathagat’s third attempt. He first appeared in 2022, after his 12th board exam. He had scored 526 marks then, subsequently after which, he decided to drop a year to re-appear in NEET. In his second attempt, Tathagat secured 611 marks.
Also read: NEET Result 2024: Ludhiana boy Priyansh bags AIR 429, scores 710/720
Tathagat recalled, “I had decided to appear in NEET and become a doctor when I was in Class 9. After getting into Class 10, I attended a coaching near my home in Patna. However, my preparations were negligible since I was not taking it seriously – I was distracted.”
“This continued till I was in Class 11. It was only after I got promoted to Class 12 that I gradually started to take my education seriously,” he added.
An elated Tathagat said, “The result has made parents and teachers at my institution happy.”
What is the success mantra?
Tathagat believes there are no specific books that can be recommended to aspirants. For him, the modules that are shared by the coaching institutes were enough to succeed.
Also read: NEET UG Result 2024: Meet 17-year-old Chandigarh boy Taijas Singh who scored perfect 720/720, secured rank 1
Online coaching helped
Tathagat shared that he had taken online coaching at the Physics Wallah Institute. He said, “The teaching methods at the institute intrigued me. Unlike the common myth about online coaching, preparing online has helped me secure a rank.”
Notably, Tathagat now waits for his counseling. Born to parents who are teachers, Tathagat is a resident of Madhubani in Bihar.
It may be mentioned here that as per the data shared by NTA, a total of 9,96,393 male candidates 13,31,321 female candidates, and 17 transgender candidates appeared for the exam.
The overall attendance has been recorded at 96.94 percent. Of this, the attendance of male candidates was 96.92 percent, and it was 96.96 percent for female candidates. Transgender candidates had registered an attendance of 94.44 percent.
Also read: NEET UG Result 2024: Mumbai bakery worker’s daughter scores 720/720, 7 from city score full marks
The exam witnessed an increase in qualifying marks this year. For instance, the qualifying marks range for the unreserved category last year was 720-137 last year and it has increased to 720-164 this year. Similarly, for OBC SC, and ST categories, it has increased from 136-107 last year to 163-129 this year.