Of endurance and well-deserved success

Vidhi Maheshwari from Chettinad Vidyashram, despite being a good student, was forced to miss one year when she developed task-specific dystonia, a neurological condition that affected the use of her right hand.

After two years of trying to diagnose the problem, and undertaking therapy, she appeared for the Class XII CBSE examinations and scored 490 marks. She has topped the country’s list of candidates with special needs.

Around two years ago, when Vidhi was in Class XI, she realised that when she wrote or held a pen, she experienced shooting pains that spread from her fingers to her wrist, and even her elbows. “If I held a spoon or a pen with my right hand, I would experience a severe cramp and I would be unable to use the hand,” she said. “It took doctors almost a year to properly diagnose the condition, which meant that I had to miss a year of school,” she added.

For the past one year, she made up for lost time, and finally was able to attend classes. “Although I was asked if I wanted a scribe, it did not make sense to me. I wasn’t sure how to dictate to a scribe for mathematics and accountancy, which are my main subjects,” she said. A year of practice, and a lot of rest between answers allowed her to write the examinations. She scored 94 in English, 98 in mathematics and 99 economics and Business Studies and a centum in accountancy.

Along with Vidhi, P. Akash and B.T. Vigneswaran from Bhavan’s Rajaji Vidyashram also featured in the CBSE toppers list for students with special needs. Akash is orthopedically challenged, and he scored 477, while Vigneswaran, who has a learning disability scored 471 marks.

Overall, 187 students with special needs from the Chennai Region appeared for the Class XII examination this year.