For Ishika Bala from Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region, the Class 10 board examination wasn’t just about dealing with anxiety but also about the trauma and pain of battling cancer. The 17-year-old overcame both to emerge as topper in the State board examination taken by 3.28 lakh students, scoring a near perfect 99.17%.

Enduring “constant shivering and frequent nasal bleeding besides extreme fatigue and overwhelming stress” for over a year, Ms. Bala — who studies at a government school in Kanker district — missed the board examination last year after being diagnosed in October 2023. Her family says that while she has always done well academically, this difficult phase strengthened her resolve and determination.

While her cancer is in remission, she will be under observation for the next 2-3 years and has routine check-ups scheduled every two to three months, according to her father, Shankar Bala.

Cheer amidst the gloom

Ms. Bala said that though she tried to adhere to her rigorous six-hour-a-day study routine, her physical condition would not permit it. “My body weight increased, white blood cell and platelet count fell, and I endured blood clots. At one point even touching water would trigger shivering, and the mental stress was extreme. On days I felt slightly better, I tried to study a little, but overall it was excruciating,” she says. 

Her condition has put considerable pressure on the family. Ms. Bala is the third among five children — four daughters and a son. The eldest, a sister, is married. Her father, a farmer, works a modest 1.7-acre plot to support his family. The parents were forced to stay in Nava Raipur, where she underwent treatment for a year, and the situation has left him in debt.

“Four of my children are studying. I spent ₹15 lakh, which exhausted my savings and forced me to take a substantial loan, which I still owe,” says Mr. Bala, 47. His family was among the Hindu Bengali refugees who migrated from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) to undivided Madhya Pradesh and were resettled in the Pakhanjore area of Kanker or North Bastar.

He says the examination results have given the family a reason to cheer, however, and he is proud of his daughter. A student of the Government Higher Secondary School in Gundahur village in Kanker, Ms. Bala was declared joint topper with Naman Kumar Khuntia of the Swami Atmanand Govt Utkrisht Eng Med School, Jashpur, on Wednesday. 

Ms. Bala credits parents and teachers for her success and says they kept her motivated. She has her sights set on engineering and subsequently the UPSC examinations because the IAS “get a lot of respect and have both the power and the passion to change things.”

What does she want to change? “The education system for sure,” she says. For now, she wishes the government would provide her financial assistance to study.