Some prominent alumni of my school, St Edmund's, Shillong

1. Mr JM Lyngdoh, chief election commissioner of India (from June 14, 2001 to February 7, 2004)
   
2. Mr Victor Banerjee, a famous Indian actor who appeared in several films by Satyajit Ray and is best known for his finely calibrated performance in "A Passage to India" (1984) for which he won the 'Best Actor' award.
   
3. Air Marshal Pranab K. Barbora, recently assumed charge as the new Vice Chief of the Air Staff (VCAS). He was formerly the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C) of IAF’s Western Air Command (WAC) and Eastern Air Command (EAC).
4. Mr Bijon Dey Sawian, IPS, (former Director General of Police, Meghalaya), former resident of Mawprem, later 5th Mile, Upper Shillong
5. Mr Dipak Narayan Dutt, IPS, (former Director General of Police, Assam), former resident of Nongrimbah Road, Shillong
6. Mr Andrew Langstieh, IA & AS, Member Public Enterprises Audit Board, Mumbai
7. Mr Satya Kant Saikia, IPS, Additional DGP, Gujarat
8. Mr Jayanta Bora, Chief HR Officer, Airtel, Karnataka & Bangalore Circle - formerly resident of Barik, Shillong
9. Mr Sanjoy Hazarika, Eminent Journalist, Author, "Strangers of the Mist", formerly resident of Motinagar, Shillong
10. Mr Kishalay Bhattarcharjee, Correspondent, NDTV, NE India - formerly Resident of Laban.
11. Mr Atanoo Boroowa, Director, Carritt Moran (P) Ltd, Kolkata, former Resident of Nongrim Hills
12. Mr Dhruba Hazarika, ACS, Deputy Commissioner, Darrang, Mangaldai, Assam - formerly Resident of Nongrim Hills
13. Mr Pritom Phookun, IA & AS, Auditor, EU Economic Mission, Norway, Oslo.

(Some designations may have changed now)

Good bye class 10 boards

The nervousness, the tension, and the excitement are all gone. I remember a span of time when I used to say “thank you” at the mere sight of someone. Any guesses when was this? It was during my class 10 board exams when so many people kept wishing me “all the best”. One day a doctor uncle looked at me while I was standing at the verandah and I yelled, “thank you uncle…thank you.” In a jiffy, both of us realised the scenario and laughed. The phone constantly ringing to wish you all the best is also gone. Gone with the wind that swept away the class 10 board exams from us.

I pity the next generation, for, they will never experience what it meant to pass the biggest academic hurdle in any student’s life. The slight tension the examination caused was part of learning. It prepared us for the other competitive exams that we will need to sit for in the future. I remember my dad telling me once that a student’s real potential is judged during the class 10 board exams and never during a 12th boards, graduation or masters degree. The logic was simple. It is during the 10th boards that a student has to make a fine balance between all the subjects: English, Literature, History/Civics, Geography, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Maths, Computer Science and Second language. And I think it makes sense. It reflects a student’s ability to a large extent. These are the subjects that I appeared for in my class 10 board exams. And the main reason I studied them and took them seriously was the board exams. Alas! it’s no more.

The logic of grades also doesn’t appeal to me. According to the grading system, a grade A1 is awarded to a student who scores between 91-100%. I think the gap is too large, for I believe a student who has scored a 91 is very good but the one who has scored 100 is a perfectionist and he must deserve that accolade. Class of 2011 will never know what a board exam means! Sigh!