Mom Takes Class Notes, Son Lands IIT Delhi Admission

When a collapsed lung forced Gunjan Kumar onto bed rest three months before India's most competitive engineering exam, most people would have called it impossible. His mother Gunja had a different plan.

The Bihar student had moved to Kota, India's coaching hub, in 2023 to prepare for the JEE Advanced exam, the gateway to the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology. But in October 2025, pneumothorax struck, collapsing his lung and confining him to complete bed rest during the most critical phase of exam preparation.

Gunja, a homemaker with a teaching degree, refused to let her son's dream slip away. She sat through every online lecture he missed, pen in hand, preparing detailed handwritten notes so Gunjan could keep learning from his hospital bed.

The health crisis was just one hurdle in Gunjan's journey. He has 70% vision impairment and wears glasses with a power of 9.5, making reading and studying physically exhausting.

Yet when results arrived, Gunjan had secured rank 50 in the physically disabled OBC category and rank 120 overall in the PWD division. The scores earned him a spot in Computer Science at IIT Delhi, one of India's most coveted academic achievements.

His father works as an engineer with the Border Roads Organisation in remote areas. His younger brother is now preparing for the same exam in Kota, inspired by his older sibling's resilience.

Why This Inspires

Gunjan's story reminds us that dreams don't require perfect circumstances. They require people who refuse to give up when conditions turn difficult.

His mother didn't have an engineering background or technical training. She simply showed up, day after day, transforming herself into a student so her son could remain one too.

The handwritten notes Gunja prepared became more than study materials. They became physical proof that someone believed in him enough to carry the weight when he couldn't.

"Life does not always offer favorable circumstances, but courage and a positive mindset help students move forward," Gunjan said, crediting both his mother and his teachers for keeping him on track.

His coaching institute officials note that competitive exam success is rarely a solo achievement. It's built on the quiet sacrifices of parents, the dedication of teachers, and the determination to push forward when everything says to stop.

This fall, Gunjan will join IIT Delhi's Computer Science program, carrying with him not just textbooks but also his mother's notebooks.