Proud and teachers applauded top students as they made their way to the stage to get their awards and certificates at the ceremony held for high achievers in the intermediate examinations the Lahore Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) here on Monday.
Asad Mumtaz topped the exam this year by securing 1,047. Speaking to The Express Tribune, Mumtaz said he had faced some difficulty adjusting to the FSc system after he enrolled with the board after completing his O level.
“I really enjoyed my mathematics exam, though,” he said. “It was very creative…it made you think.”
He was awarded a gold medal, a laptop along with Rs20,000. Mumtaz said he hoped to pursue a mechanical engineering degree.
Muhammad Hussain, a Pakistan studies teacher at the Government College University (GCU), was also present with his students.
Hussain said the GCU fraternity was celebrating the excellent results of their students. He said GCU students had secured 10 top positions in the intermediate exam this . “The mood on the campus is festive,” he said. “Our students made us very proud today.”
GCU’s Hafiz Usama Tanveer secured the second position.
Talking to The Express Tribune, he said the months leading to the exam were quite challenging.
“Studying by candlelight is not easy,” he said. “My parents used to ensure I was comfortable during that time so I could study.”
Tanveer has been granted admission at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST). He said he wanted to study engineering.
“I want to work on fuel efficient systems that saves time and cost,” he said.
Khadija Nadeem from Kinnaird College for Women told The Express Tribune that she planned to study medicine.
She secured 1,038 marks to be tied with Tanveer. She said she had hoped for even better but was content with what she had got.
Ayesha Sikandar Baig, of the Punjab College, stood third with 1,037 marks.
Baig said she had not expecting to secure any position.
“I was just watching a movie when I got a call. A friend asked why I wasn’t watching the television since they were announcing my name,” she said. Baig said she wanted to be a surgeon.
“We have always been very competitive but in an extremely healthy environment,” said Ahmed Ali Aziz as he spoke of how both he and his younger brother had secured the first two positions in the pre-medical group.
Both Ahmed Ali Aziz and Muhammad Ali Aziz were GCU students.
Muhammad Ali Aziz scored 1,034 marks securing the first spot, while his older brother Ahmed Ali Aziz came in second with 1,026 marks.
“We don’t let scores spoil our relationship,” he said.
The BISE awarded Rs15,000 for the second position holder and Rs10,000 for the third.
Two awards for outstanding academic achievement in psychology, called the Arifa Khan Gold Medal were given to Adnan Hafeez of the Kot Radha Kishan Government Degree College for Boys and Khadeja Khan of the Lahore College for Women.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 24th, 2013.