Back-breaking poverty had forced Malliala Ajay to give up on his higher education dreams, but his school teachers have come together to remove financial obstacles in the bright student’s path.
Ajay studied in the Zilla Parishad High School in Muthyampeta village of Mallial mandal, scoring 9.7 GPA in the SSC examinations, and qualified for admission into IIIT-Basara. However, he was unable to pay fee of ₹9,200 to pursue the six-year course there.
His father, a poor labourer, migrated to the Gulf in search of employment six months ago and has been unable to send any money back home. Struggling to make ends meet, his mother Shyamala, an agricultural worker, asked him to withdraw his admission, given that Ajay has two younger siblings — a sister and a brother.
When school headmaster Venkateshwarlu heard about Ajay not being able to continue his education, he visited him along with other teachers in tow. On seeing them, Ajay broke down. Consoling him, the teachers promised to help support his education.
Personal funds
Soon after, the headmaster conducted a meeting with the teachers and announced his personal contribution of ₹10,000 for Ajay’s education. Two other teachers K Sujatha and Manohar Rao also pledged an amount of ₹10,000 each, followed by ₹5,000 contribution each from teachers Chandrashekhar, Anji Reddy, Venugopal Rao, and Sudhakar Reddy.
With the pooled money in hand, Mr. Venkateshwarlu escorted Ajay to IIIT-Basara and admitted him there by paying the fee apart from purchasing clothes and study material for him. After news of this noble gesture spread, village sarpanch Tirupathi Reddy and newly elected ZPTC member K. Rammohan handed over ₹5,000 each to the headmaster.
Contributions pour in
Village Netaji Youth Club members have collectively donated ₹5,000 and the NRI association ₹15,000 for Ajay’s education.
Mr. Venkateshwarlu said he would open a joint account and deposit the donation for Ajay to meet his education expenses and showered praise on the contributors for helping a bright student pursue higher education. Ajay told The Hindu that he aspires to become a software engineer and he is certain about reaching his goal with the support of his teachers. “I will always remain indebted to them for making my higher education dream come true,” he said.
