History has witnessed many jewels in the form of teachers. The influence teachers have over their students is immeasurable. They are the founding stones on which the futures of their pupils are built. Today, on Teachers’ Day, we are going to take a look at some of these pioneers.
Anand Kumar
He started the Super 30 program to coach poor students for IIT-JEE. His story is that of another bright student who was unable to attend Cambridge University because of lack of funds. Having a deep interest in mathematics, Anand started the Super 30 program in 2000 where he helped students prepare for IIT Joint Entrance Examinations. He became a subject of an hour-long documentary on the Discovery channel in 2009. Hindi movie Super 30 is based on his life and journey.
Rajesh Kumar Sharma
He started his own school under a flyover of a metro railway station. A college dropout, who runs a general store by himself, Rajesh Kumar Sharma teaches nearly 200 children under the metro rail flyover near the Yamuna Bank station in Delhi. It was started by the man in 2007 with just two children, and in spite of not following a fixed syllabus, the initiative has grown into a school.
Vimla Kaul
She began teaching the underprivileged right after retiring with her husband. And continues to do so even at the age of 81. Having retired from the profession of teaching nearly 20 years ago, Vimla went back to it almost immediately when she began teaching underprivileged students. Unhappy with the quality of education being imparted at government schools, she started her own little school in a 4-room apartment which was called Guldasta. Her husband joined her in her efforts till his demise in 2009. Now, Vimla continues the good work on her own.
Barun Biswas
Teaching the children in this backward area from West Bengal, he stood up to politically motivated crimes. In an unknown part of West Bengal called Sutia, where political violence was common, one man stood up to the System. Barun Biswas, who resembles a character from a Bollywood film, knew the only way out of this chaos was education for the poor farmer’s children. He educated them and raised his voice against the goons which got him killed in 2012. However, Biswas’s amazing story brought the injustice to light in front of all big publications and channels.
These were some of those jewels that we call teachers. Happy Teachers’ Day.
PNN