Prabhat Khabar awards academic excellence in Bihar and Jharkhand

Through Pratibha Sammaan, the Hindi daily Prabhat Khabar has been awarding meritorious secondary and senior secondary school students in Bihar and Jharkhand.

Hindi daily Prabhat Khabar has felicitated more than 30,000 students from over 62 districts of Bihar and Jharkhand. The event, Pratibha Sammaan, was organised on July 29, 2012 at Sri Krishna Memorial Hall in Patna to recognise 1,400 meritorious students. Each student was awarded a medal and a merit certificate by known figures from the academia and state administration.

The chief guest of the evening was Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh of the Patna High Court. Other dignitaries present included Vijay Prakash, principal secretary (planning and development), Govt. of Bihar; Dr Shambhunath Singh, vice chancellor, Patna University; Dr Arun Kumar Sinha, principal, Patna Science College; Dr S Chandra, chairman, Bihar Homeopathy Board; and Kulbhushan Jain, zonal manager, Bank of India.

The event was attended in good numbers by not only the students' fraternity but also their parents, teachers and the school staff.

Encouraging students and congratulating them on their impressive academic performance, Justice Singh said, "Other than excelling in studies, students should attend to their societal responsibilities with equal sincerity. Till the time every section of the society doesn't contribute, the nation cannot develop."

Patna University's Professor Singh said, "School education and higher education are two milestones of the same path. Both are related strongly and deeply. If the quality of education imparted in the schools is better, so would be the level of higher education as a consequence. Prabhat Khabar has started a praiseworthy initiative which has helped find talented students from the far flung areas of Bihar and Jharkhand."

Appreciating the efforts of the newspaper, Dr C B Pandey, teacher, Army Public School Danapur, said, "I thank Prabhat Khabar for this initiative that will increase competitiveness among the school students and therefore, the general quality of education in Bihar."

Another teacher from Don Bosco School Patna said, "We are proud to see our students being felicitated on the big stage. It's a moment of great pride when your students do well - it makes all the teaching relevant and worthwhile."

Commenting on the relevance of Pratibha Sammaan, K K Goenka, managing director, Neutral Publishing House, said, "Through this event, we have tried to create a connect with the student community. In Bihar itself, we covered 38 districts. At the felicitation ceremony, most of the students turned up with their parents and we connected with the whole family, creating a very strong brand value for Prabhat Khabar."