Chandigarh/Sangrur, June 4 -- Forty students from Punjab's government-run schools have cleared the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Advanced, paving way for them to join the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), school education minister Harjot Singh Bains said on Tuesday.

Congratulating the students, Bains said they have made the state proud.

Bains said that Arshdeep Singh, student of Shaheed Flight Lt. Mohit Kumar Garg School of Eminence Samana, achieved the feat despite suffering a personal loss. He said Arshdeep's mother, Sunita Rani, worked as a sanitation worker at a meager salary of Rs.8,000 a month. Yet, she instilled in him the determination to pursue his dreams.

He also shared the story of Lovepreet Singh, a stu...