The 10,000 hour rule

For all Jairam Rameshs condescension,plenty of people in this country still believe that IIT is the ultimate portal to success. IIT-JEE results,and profiles of the exulting winners,are a yearly media ritual. Like with all stories of endurance and triumph,we want to know what it took,the odds they fought,to crack this ferociously competitive examination. Nearly always,they are heartwarming stories about small-town kids making good. Sometimes,they dont even want to be scientists and engineers this years No 1 intends to shift to the civil services later but the IIT-JEE is a test of mental prowess and dedication.

The place where all this yearning for IIT has been converted into a thrumming growth industry is Kota,in Rajasthan. Students from across India descend on the city to spend a year of two in intense preparation for engineering and medical entrance exams 50,000 students arrived in Kota in 2009 alone. Theres a pretty formidable entrance test for the better-known coaching centres. And,in fact,these institutes supply around a quarter of the IITs intake. Over the years,they have perfected the IIT cheat code,boiled down the extensive material to be mastered into a set of key lessons. Of course,most of the students who come to Kota are incredibly industrious anyway,and willing to dedicate some of the best years of their lives to the IIT project,studying for 10-12 hours a day and sinking Rs 2 to 3 lakh for tuition. Unlike Bihars phenomenally successful Super 30,which picks a few disadvantaged students every year,and prepares them for the test,Kota is clearly a large industry.

More power to them,for showing that genius and merit are a matter of clocking in the hours,a combination of some natural ability and then,obsessive practice.