Bansal Classes, Kota

How Service Sector Influences Economies

Report dated 02 October 2017

MBA (IB) 2017-20 - Group # 3

Aadesh Verma (4)

Pankaj Choudhary (30)
Pawan Sinha (31)
Ranjeet Jha (40)
Siddharth Sawhney (48)

MBA IB (2017-20) Page 1

Preface

For years engineering, medical and the administrative services have been the
professions of choice for the middle class. Engineering is the most preferred since there
are more colleges offering engineering. Other professions have come up in recent
years, but one often needs to be well connected to get those jobs. It is perceived that
the chances of getting a job with an engineering degree are far better than with a simple
Bachelor of Science or Arts degree.

The dream to get into IIT has made parents get in their beloved ones to the coaching
institutes, which help students, prepare for the competitive exam.

This report gives an overview of the transformation of Kota from an Industrial town to a
service oriented educational hub, which is synonymous with the making of Bansal
Classes.

The report has three sections; firstly, it describes the exceptional grit and determination
of Mr. V K Bansal. The narrative covers his struggle to overcome his physical
inadequacies and still deliver quality education to a large number of aspiring students
and to help achieve their goals.

The second section covers the transformation of Kota from a sleepy mid-sized town to a
services and sharing economy.

The last section is research based and compares the present phase of Bansal Classes
as compared to its peak. Having grown in size to a large monolith, its struggle to keep
up with the decentralized and distributed mode of learning aided by IT platforms.

The contents are sourced from news articles, editorials, essays and few books on the
subject.

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SECTION 1 initial batch of eight students with Mr.
Bansal teaching mathematics himself. The
classes were held around the family dining
Background table.
The story of Bansal Classes is also the
story of its founder and mentor Mr. Vinod As luck would have it, Mr. Bansal met G D
Kumar Bansal. He has his origins from the Agarwal of Mumbai. He inspired him to start
town of Jhansi, which is from Bundelkhand, coaching students for IIT-JEE. Mr. Bansal
the southern part of Uttar Pradesh. returned to Kota and started coaching
students for IIT-JEE and in 1985, his first
batch of students faced IIT-JEE.
He was born on 26th of October 1946 in a
humble background. He graduated from
Banaras Hindu University in Mechanical One of his initial students describes their
Engineering and started his carrier with JK experience, as He was a fantastic teacher.
Synthetics, Kota in the year 1971. During He may be strict at times and was very
that time, Kota was a struggling industrial demanding in terms of rigor in problem
township with two prominent industries solving, but this laid the foundation of a
namely the JK Synthetics in the private sound professional carrier.
sector and Instrumentation Limited in the
public sector.
The news of success of his students in the
competitive examinations spread slowly and
In 1974, Mr. Bansal was diagnosed with an steadily. Some of his ex-colleagues too
ailment muscular dystrophy, which returned to Kota and joined hands with him
gradually weakens the limbs; consequently, in teaching other subjects. Soon parents
his movements are severely impaired. The from nearly towns would land-up at the
closure of the industries in Kota and doorsteps and request him to teach their
subsequent turn of events had a telling wards. Regardless Mr. Bansal would put
effect on his persona and only strengthened them through stiff entrance test, thus
his never say die spirit. maintaining the high entry barrier.

In 1983, the company JK Synthetics started

to close down, followed by the lockout in
Instrumentation Limited. These sudden
events left a sizeable number of scientific
work force jobless and searching for
opportunities. Most of his friends left for
greener pastures, some changed their
profession and others migrated to other
cities. The ailment limited Mr. Bansals
ability to move out of Kota to a new city.

Mr. Bansal began teaching class VII

students in 1981 and later started teaching Fig 1: Vinod Kumar Bansal on his electric
class X and XII students. The initial students moving chair
were from the JK Synthetics employees
colony. Success was not too far from the

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Launch of Bansal Classes 1991 Reaching the pinnacle (2001 - 2015)

In the year 1991, Mr. Bansal took voluntary Kota is famous for its coaching institutes for
retirement and started Bansal Classes engineering and medical entrance exams. It
is also called "Education City of India" as
described on the Kota district administration
website.
In the year 2017, a whopping 39,000
students from Kota cleared Joint Entrance
Examination (JEE) Main 2017. Amongst
those who secured ranks in IIT, 45 secured
ranks within the top 100 AIR (All India
Ranks) in IIT-JEE advanced. This was way
above the 35,000 students qualified in JEE
Main 2016.
Fig 2: Vigyan Nagar Centre, Kota

Bansal Classes has the lions share

Students from all parts of India started amongst the ranks holders. Its students got
flowing in, but getting past the high entry AIR rank 1, five times in year 2001, 2002,
barrier through the tough entrance test of 2007, 2008 and 2015. They also held AIR
Bansal Classes was a challenge in itself. It rank 2, six times and AIR rank 3, six 6
brought an opportunity for the locals to start times. This is a unique achievement for any
their business; thereby demand for rented coaching institute in India.
apartments and food facility increased in
coming years. The methodology, teaching
standards bought success for students to
crack the IIT entrance exam. The success
rate was in the range of 50-60%.
Each year around 150,000 students come
to Kota with zeal to fulfill their dream of
getting admission in IITs and medical
colleges.

Fig 3: A look at the cycle stand of coaching

institute tells about the number of students
preparing for competitive exams

The students are put through a 9 hour study

regimen where multiple choice questions
are solved along with the techniques and
concepts behind them. Every month

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students are put though a 6 hour test on the person of outstanding merit. on 31
similar pattern of JEE on a given Sunday. December 2001
Thus by the end of their 2 year term, each Honour for meritorious, dedicated
student would have faced mock JEE not and sincere services to the
less than 20 times and he/ she is ready to profession. Given by Indian Medical
face the challenge of the actual test. Association, Kota. (Affiliates to
I.M.A. HQ., New Delhi)
Highest Income Tax Payer Award
Mr Bansal himself puts in 16 hours of hard from Income Tax Dept., Kota (Raj.)
work daily and expects his students to for the year 1999-2000.
match with equal number of hours of Various other awards by City
studies. Authorities and Institutions. Rotary
Club, Lions Club etc.
The admission to IITs is statistically tougher
than getting into Harward or Cambridge. [Src: IT-BHU Alumni data base]
While 310,000 took the entrance test in
Y2008, only 8,600 were accepted. One third
of those who made it were from the Competition and contemporaries
coaching institutes of Kota. It would be safe
to assume that th of those successful
from Kota belonged to Bansal Classes. As with any business, some of the ex-
faculty members of Bansal Classes
branched out and started new coaching
The proud Bansalites include Vinod Khosla, institutes. Notable amongst them are Allen,
co-founder of Sun Microsystems Inc., and Resonance, Vibrant to name a few. Their
Sunil Sarin, former chief executive officer of teaching styles were different and they
Vodafone Group Plc. Aptly their moto is covered the shortcomings in the study
Bansalite today, IITian tomorrow. pattern of the original institute.

Awards and Honors Some of these new institutes started to offer

integrated schooling in CBSE and ICSE
affiliated schools. Others offered hostel and
Mr Bansal has been bestowed with various transportation facilities. Few of the coaching
awards and felicitations at the state and institutes focused on medical entrance
national level. Some of them are: examinations besides offering courses on
engineering.

'Memento of Honour', awarded on

the eve of 50th Independence Day However, in the knowledge based economy
(15th August, 1996) by the there is always space for old and new.
Government of Rajasthan for While there are presently around 40
eminent services and specific institutes having 100 odd branches in Kota,
contribution towards Professional the top six out of these attract the maximum
Education. talent. Bansal Classes remain at the top of
"Kota Man of the year 2001" in the ranking order.
public recognition of valuable
services to the community and
enhancing the prestige of Kota as a

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SECTION 2 marketing and accounting hands in the
support functions. Banking sector has
flourished big time. In addition to that, the
Kota's journey from a dying town to a regular visit of parents of these students has
booming coaching hub opened new business opportunities in the
Hotel or hospitality sector.
The mid-nineties saw two out of the three
major industries in Kota town closing its
operations. While JK Industries closed in In any academic year there are 1.5 lakh
1995-97, the Instrumentation Limited students thronging to seek coaching from
downed its shutters soon after. Each of this around 40 odd coaching institutes. These
industry employed around 500 workers and students contribute 1500 crores to the
3000 engineers and support staff. economy of Kota (Scr: Wall Street Journal)

Around the same time Mr Bansal had The growth in services has not only
launched his coaching institute and by the attracted small time entrepreneurs,
year 1994 it was a flourishing business housewives, retired professionals, but also
employing hoards people in the Kota town. attracted talent. Recently 2 IITians have
opened up a company Bindas Wash at
Kota to cater to the laundry and cleaning
The rapid rise in the number of students services. They capitalized on the
brought a large number of associated opportunity to save time for the students by
services like accommodation, food or mess doing their menial cleaning jobs at
facility, transportation, laundry services, affordable prices, so that the students can
Internet cafes and other support activities. spend upto 16 hours a day towards their
Thus creating many small time goal. They have an app at Google Playstore
entrepreneurs besides directly and indirectly and claim to be doing good business.
employing scores of people in the services
sector.
In fact the whole of Kota township is not
centered around providing the facilities and
With the rise in number of students flocking services to the students, the pie is big, 1500
to Bansal Classes, as a natural progression Crores, not too small to ignore.
few of their teachers branched out to launch
their own coaching institutes. Presently
there are around 40 such coaching Sharing Economy
institutes in and around Kota town.

The collaborative or the sharing economy

This has opened new career opportunities came naturally to Kota. As he formally
for talented faculty at not only at Bansal launched his coaching institute in 1991, the
Classes but at each of these 40 coaching number of students started coming from far-
institutes. The starting salary for a fresh flung places of Rajasthan, Haryana, Bihar,
graduate from IIT teaching in one of these down south and eastern part of India.
institutes can range from 8 lakhs to anything
upto 80 lakhs per annum.
This small town essentially were far away
from metropolitan cities and hence lacked
The large number of institutes is proper coaching institutes.
supplemented by IT professionals,

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Fig 4: Households engaged in rendering
paying guest services

These students from different parts of the

country had varied food habits and tastes.
While Kota being a small industrial town
lacked proper hotels or other long term
accommodation facilities. The recently
dislodged employees of the sick industrial
units seized this opportunity and started Fig 5: Doctor by day and shopkeeper by
providing housing and messing facilities on night in busy coaching hub
a long term basis.

The house wives would churn out

homemade dishes to the liking of their little
paying guests with the warmth of a family.
The other daily need chores were taken
care of by unskilled and semi-skilled
workers who had lost jobs in the factories.

Small time entrepreneurs sprung at every

nook and corner of Kota providing internet
cafes and other allied services essential for
studies.

Thus, providing services to large student

community became an occupation and
steady source of livelihood in an otherwise
industrial township.

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SECTION 3
At the same time Mr Bansal is not alien to
new technology, he has adopted to digital
Fall of Bansal Classes teaching aids in as early as the early 1990s
by using digital pens and display boards to
conduct classes.
With new entrants growing in the nook and
corner of every Tier-2, Tier 3 cities and
many renowned faculty members departing Hence, one can hope the Bansal Classes
and starting their own business have led to will continue to impart training on young
a downfall of Bansal Classes. The Vibrant minds to achieve its carrier objectives and it
Academy started with 7 ex- Bansal Classes will surely adopt and overcome
faculty. technological challenges in the times to
It is trying hard to hold the grip with a of come.
alumnus base of 20000+ IITans. Stalls and
hoardings can be easily seen in
metropolitan cities attracting students.
Mr. Bansal do not take regular classes
anymore.
They have lowered the bar for entrance this
once prestigious coaching center.
They have started luring students with
attractive cash discounts and trip to foreign
land for exibitions.
Slowly but steadily the competition was
catching up from unexpected quarters. The
coaching institutes in bigger cities of Delhi,
Mumbai, Pune and elsewhere improved
upon their question banks and focus on the
multiple choice entrance examination
pattern. These coaching classes were
closer to home and there was no need for
the students to stay in boarding.

Newer institutes like BYJUs learning app

transformed the coaching institute to the
home based delivery model. Educomp start-
up ConceptOwl has come up with a
interactive on-line study module. Each of Fig. 6 : Bansal Classes stall seen at Durga
the IT enabled delivery platforms has the Puja Pandal, Dwarka Sec -11, New Delhi
potential to disrupt the traditional classroom 2017
based coaching institutes. These new
models are less infrastructure intensive,
scalable and easy to access from the
comforts of students own home. Each of
these is vying for a fair share of the Rs.
0,000 Cr IIT-JEE test preparation market.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Vinod Kumar Bansal, Wikepedia [26 September 2017, at 19:16]

2. Kota district website, http://kota.rajasthan.gov.in/

3. Reunion of class of 1971 at Kota, ITBHU Global archives [14 - 16 Dec 2012, at Kota,
Rajasthan]

4. It All Adds Up: The Story of V.K. Bansal

5. Paperback, Biography, Sachin Jha, Penguin Books India [2011]

6. TEDx Talks, Karmas Mathematical Quality, [18 May 2017]

7. Indias Cram School Confidential: Two years, One Test, 40,000 students, Wall
Street Journal, Eric Bellman [Sept 30, 2008]

8. Startup by IITians at Kota http://bindaaswash.com/bindaas-wash/

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