Intentar ORO - Gratis

The other Kotas

Careers 360

|

May 2024

As exam competition intensifies, coaching hubs are sprouting across small towns and tiertwo cities such as Sikar in Rajasthan, Akola in Maharashtra, and Patna, Bihar

- Sheena Sachdeva

The other Kotas

When Sonal Sharma* moved to Sikar from neighbouring Jhunjhunu in 2019 to finish school while preparing for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET UG), the small, provincial town in Rajasthan had only about six-seven coaching institutes and 10-12 hostels.

"Over the last five years, 10-20 more coaching institutes have come up and around 30-40 new hostels," she said. Most of the coaching institutions are located on the eastern edge of the town, on Piprali Road that connects Sikar town to the next one, Piprali. Set 121 km from the state capital Jaipur, and even farther from India's bustling coaching hub, Kota, Sikar is emerging as another major coaching hub and in the same pattern.

The first centre, Career Line Coaching (CLC) opened in 1996. Another Sikar major, Gurukripa Institute, came up in 2008. But most of the action happened over the past few years. Several Kota-origin stalwarts, including Unacademy, DS Institute, and Physics Wallah's Vidyapeeth & Paathshala, have set up centres here; the last came up just six months ago. Allen Career Institute and Matrix JEE Academy have centres here too.

"When I joined the institute in 2021, there were far fewer students and teachers focused on every student in the class. But now with an increase in aspirants, the city in the last two years has seen a sudden rise in students preparing for NEET," added Sharma. "When we see large crowds of students ushered in for tests and get stressed even after preparing for months." Sharma was unable to qualify in 2023 and appeared for NEET 2024.

"In April, every year, you can see a sudden increase in the flow of families bringing their children for admissions. But you will mostly find students from nearby areas like Fatehpur, Madhopur, Neem-Ka-Thana and nearby areas of Rajasthan," said the owner of s juice stall on Piprali road.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE Careers 360

Careers 360

Careers 360

Why all 4 pillars of education matter

Translation: A quarter of knowledge comes from the teacher, a quarter from one's own effort, a quarter from peers, and the final quarter through experience over time.

time to read

4 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Careers 360

AI IN EDUCATION REVOLUTIONISING TOWARDS EDUCATION 4.0

AI has the power to transform the educational landscape of today, solving some of the biggest challenges of modern-day education. The transition from conventional teaching and learning methods to an AI-enabled or tech-enabled learning is observed in many domains of study, including secondary to senior secondary education as well as college education.

time to read

4 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Careers 360

Introspection, contemplation as important as 'outwardfocused inquiry' in learning

NEP offers an opportunity for Indian educators to blend intuitive wisdom with modern teaching to transform classrooms into holistic learning spaces, write the CBSE secretary and a Delhi Government school leader

time to read

6 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Careers 360

Promises vs Provision: Public funding in NEP 2020 framework

Five years after NEP's launch, India's education spending stagnant at 4.1% of GDP - far below the promised 6% - while declining scholarships, fund shift towards elite institutes, and rising student debt challenge the policy's vision of inclusive education

time to read

5 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Education's Heroes

In India, education is shaped not only by policies and institutions but also by the people who refuse to accept inequality as the norm. They come from courtrooms, laboratories, medical colleges, village squares, and city streets, bound by a belief that learning must be a right for all, not a privilege for a few. Some take on entrenched systems through litigation and advocacy; others create small but lasting change through libraries, community classrooms, and grassroots campaigns.

time to read

13 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Careers 360

Relevance of engineering in the age of AI

Which college? Which branch? These questions plague millions of students entering higher education every year.

time to read

3 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

NEP 2020 How Far Have We Come?

The business of policy-making for education is the business of nation building.

time to read

16 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Careers 360

Learning beyond the classroom

In every age, engineering has been the engine of transformation.

time to read

3 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

Careers 360

'We operate on trust, but there are consequences for dishonesty'

Anil Sahasrabudhe, chairman of National Educational Technology Forum (NETF), the executive committee of National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), and National Board of Accreditation (NBA), speaks with Aeshwarya Tiwari about the reforms in accreditation bodies, global accreditation standards, NIRF rankings, 'One Nation One Data' initiative, and more. Edited excerpts below

time to read

12 mins

August 2025

Careers 360

India needs 10 times the number of audiologists it has

The Bachelor of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology degree can open many career avenues, its placement records are stellar and salaries, generous. It needs better promotion

time to read

5 mins

June 2025

Listen

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size