Palak, Somya among country’s top three

Vishal Joshi & 

Parveen Arora

Tribune News Service

Pehowa/Karnal, May 21

Two Haryana girls, Palak Goyal from Pehowa and Somya Uppal from Karnal, have made the state proud by securing pan-India second and third positions, respectively, in the CBSE class XII examination.

Palak, a non-medical student of Tagore Public School, secured 496 marks (99.2 per cent), while Somya, a student of St Theresa Convent School, obtained 495 marks (99 per cent). Palak secured 100 per cent marks in physics and 99 per cent each in chemistry, maths, English and physical education. “I had never dreamt of being a national topper. I thank my parents and teachers for my success,” she said.

Palak wants to excel in computer sciences and aspires to be a teacher after pursuing further studies at NIT, Kurukshetra. “I have no interest in music or reading. Though I enjoy social networking, I never allowed Facebook to become a hindrance,” she said. She devoted three-four hours a day to studies after school.

Palak’s father Subhash Goyal is a commission agent and her mother Ranjana a homemaker.

Somya Uppal, a resident of Karnal’s Old Housing Board, secured 100 per cent marks in economics and business studies. “It is like a dream come true for me. My hard work has paid off,” said Somya. 

“I would like to pursue economics honours and become an IAS officer,” she said. Her father Vipin Uppal is a businessman and mother Ruchika Uppal a homemaker. Somya shares the third spot with Ajish Sekar of PSBB Senior Secondary, Chennai.