Board exam child warriors a bit OTT?

Two subjects stand out - tellingly - in terms of big newsworthiness in this country when compared to others. One, the importance paid to the Union budget, an annual national housekeeping exercise that's glamourised into a shoestring Academy Awards kind of show that everyone thinks that everyone watches. Two, the huge importance given to 'toppers' of board exams. The first, we get - old tradition, grown-ups wanting to show they are doing grown-up things (read: counting money), a good way for the ruling party to get an hour or two of uninterrupted airtime (thankfully starting at 11 a.m. on a weekday). But the second? It's a sweet, maudlin way of showcasing India's youngsters as well as the talent of some of them for cracking the exam code by answering questions correctly. Sure, a creditable act. But worth Nobel-winning coverage? As they say, whatever floats your boat.

In a way, exam results time is when all those coaching centres get to flaunt their creditworthiness. It's annual budget time for these entities, lining up their client-students in advertisements as brand ambassadors that will get the next catchment. For the vast majority of students, of course, it is 'See, how good these boys and girls are' time. Does this have longer, lasting consequences on our - favourite Indian word alert - youth? Watch this demographic dividend space.