Maharashtra SSC exams: Students brave 5-km trek for a bright future

Students from remote tribal areas in the state are living examples of determination in the face of difficulties Nearly 50 students from two villages in Ambegaon 95 km from Pune travel 17 km to reach their SSC board exam centre in Pokhari Theyrsquore used to walking 5 km to reach their schools every dayThey walked nearly 5 km through hilly terrain to reach their schools before heading to the exam centre Several settlements located around 30 km from Bhimashankar in Ambegaon Taluka arranged common transport for the journeyThe principal of New English School Gohe KurdOn Friday 16 studentsmdashincluding six boys and ten girlsmdashfrom Shri Aaudambar Adivasi Shikshan Sanstharsquos New English School Gohe Kurd and 13 students from Shrirang Gabhale Vidyalaya Phulwade arranged a small tempo to reach the exam centre These villages with a population of around 1200 to 1500 are located near Malin where a landslide tragedy occurred in the pastThe students arrived at their school in the morning and stood in a queue to board the tempo Their parents who work as farm labourers earning around Rs 150 to Rs 200 per day were engaged in their daily workStudents queue up to board the tempo for the exam centrePayal Dhumal one of the students smiled while attempting her first paper When asked how she felt and congratulated on appearing for the board exams she responded with a smile and said ldquoThank yourdquo She aims to score above 80 per cent in her board exams having achieved the same in her prelims Payal aspires to become an IPS officer and plans to focus on UPSC preparation after her examsAudumbar Dattu Sarvade principal of New English School Gohe has been working there for 26 years He said ldquoPeople in these villages are farm workers earning daily wages Our school has classes from the eighth standard onwards Previously these children completed their education in municipal schools They walk around 25 km through hilly terrain daily to attend school To ensure they reach the exam centre on time the parents and Gram Panchayat arrange a common tempo every year covering the transport cost of around R9000 to R15000 for all exam days This helps save time during the exam period The school does not charge any fees for admission and all books notebooks and stationery are provided free of costrdquoPravin Bambhale a police constable who topped SSC in his schoolThe principal added ldquoOur school has a 100 per cent result every year with all students securing distinctions in the SSC board exam After completing high school these students take admissions in Manchar Narayangoan or nearby ITIs for further studies This year we expect four to five students to score above 80 to 85 per centrdquoBig ambitionsRutuja Ganesh Ware who scored the highest in her prelims said ldquoIt is my dream to succeed in administrative services Our family survives on daily wages and my parents are farm workers Their work locations are uncertain Rich farmers from taluka areas send vehicles to collect farm workers Sometimes they earn as little as Rs 150 or Rs 200 per dayrdquoRoshani Vikram Gabhale another student who stood third in her prelims said ldquoBuses ply here but we have to walk 12 km and the frequency is low with no guarantee that they will arrive on time So we arrange for a tempordquoChallenges facedThe students face challenges in studying especially during the rainy season when power outages occur in the area due to heavy rainfall and occasional landslides Meanwhile in summer there is an acute water shortage and most of their time is spent fetching waterThe villagers cultivate rice on small plots of land as there is adequate rainfall but it barely suffices to feed them They are happy that their children are getting an educationThe principal mentioned that several past students from these villages are now working in the police and administration They are invited to felicitation programmes and career counselling sessions which inspire the studentsThe New English School operates from a small tworoom ironshed structure managed by three teachers and one peon Initially it was the house of one of theemployeesA success storyPravin Bambhale a Nigdi police constable topped his schoolrsquos SSC board exam in 2010 with 75 per cent He said ldquoI stayed in Bamblewadi Gohe Khurd village and had to cross streams and walking 5 km to reach the exam centrerdquoHis school lacked a proper building and was holding classes in a temple premises ldquoNow at least classrooms have roofs We want equal educational opportunitiesrdquo he said mentioning his two brothers both municipal school teachersldquoCrossing streams was difficult especially during monsoons Elderly villagers helped usrdquo he shared Due to no junior college nearby he studied in Pune later becoming a constable while completing a BA in Geography and an MA in EconomicsFormer village students donated computers and books last year now aiming for a proper school and library Their perseverance strengthens the nationRs 150Amount some of the studentsrsquo parents earn per day