A Delhi man who teaches underprivileged children for absolutely free has earned the Internet’s respect and goodwill just after his story was published on the preferred web page ‘Humans of Bombay’. In the post, the man revealed that he grew up working as a kid labourer, but loved going to college. His father was a farmer, and he was made to work in the fields considering the fact that key college, but that did not deter him from pursuing education. Instead, he would cycle 30 kilometres each and every day to attain college. “I’d save a portion of what I made to pay my high school fees-I was the first in my family to complete high school,” he stated.
The man, who has not been named, stated he dreamed of going to college and even got admission, but dropped out when his father fell sick. “When he got better, I had no savings to study again. My dream to be an engineer crashed,” he stated.
At the age of 20, he migrated to Delhi, exactly where he eked out a living carrying out odd jobs – promoting watermelons to working at building websites.
“I took up every menial job that came my way and saved every penny. Overtime, I was able to start a small grocery store,” he stated.
This was about the time metro building websites had been cropping up everywhere in Delhi. In 2006, the man went to the banks of Yamuna to see the building work taking spot. That’s when he saw some workers’ children begging and asked them why they had been not in college.
“When I spoke to them they told me, ‘Our parents can’t afford to send us to school. That’s why we’re begging.’ My heart sank,” he stated.
Remembering his personal childhood working as a labourer, the man decided to acquire textbooks for the children and began teaching a handful of of them. Word of his classes quickly spread and more children began approaching him. “That motivated me, so I decided to create a makeshift school under the bridge of the station to provide free education,” he stated.
The man outfitted his college with fundamental necessities – a blackboard, a banner declaring “free school”, carpets for the students to sit on. Within a year, he was teaching about 300 slum children.
“With my savings, I bought all my students textbooks and stationery. After I’d give them basic education, I’d help enroll them in government schools,” he stated. For him, the greatest reward is seeing his students do nicely.
“Once, when a ragpicker’s child I taught visited me and said, ‘Sir, I’ve been accepted into engineering college!’ I cried. I told him, ‘You’re fulfilling my dream!'” the man recalled. “Nothing beats the feeling of seeing my former students returning and encouraging kids to choose education! They tell them, ‘If our lives could change through education, yours can too!'”
Since getting shared yesterday, the Facebook post has racked up more than 12,000 ‘likes’ and more than 500 comments.
“One of the best stories I’ve ever read! Congrats and blessings to you all the way from Trinidad and Tobago,” one Facebook user wrote.
“You are doing an exceptional work! More power to you and all volunteers helping you in this lovely cause!” one more wrote.