New Delhi: When journalist turned author and social worker Biswajit Jha met Padma awardee social worker Karimul Hak way back in 2014, Jha was going through the toughest period of his life. A year back he had quit his journalist’s job in Delhi to serve the helpless children of his village and start something on his own which would change the fortunes of many children.
After quitting his job, he first started to teach in a village primary school that his father had established at Rajganj in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal. Whatever money he and his professor-wife, who had taught in a Delhi college, had accumulated over the years in Delhi, was beginning to run out. Jha was assailed by doubts: Had they done the right thing by quitting their respective jobs to pursue his dream? What if his dream was nothing but a pipe dream?
A meeting with Karimul Hak, a tea garden labourer who was serving his villagers by taking critically ill patients to hospitals, changed everything. When he saw how Karimul Hak, despite earning a meagre monthly salary of Rs 3,000, carried so many patients for free, Jha’s own predicament seemed rosy in comparison to Karimul.
“Inspired by Karimul Hak, I then started to work with renewed interest. Besides teaching the village children, I took over the responsibility of running a charitable football academy in my village which had been started by my teacher who was in his deathbed at that time,” Jha recalls.
During his time with the football academy, Jha supported many poor kids who went on to play for some of the top clubs of India. Take the example of Manoj Mohammad. Manoj, who hailed from a very poor family, was only eight years old when his father passed away. With his determination and hard work, and ably supported by Jha, Manoj is currently playing for the Indian Super League (ISL) champion team Hyderabad FC. Earlier, he also played for the famous Bengal club, East Bengal.
“Not only Manoj but one girl from the academy — Kalpana Roy — also played for the under-19 Indian women’s football team. The time I spent with these children at the football academy gave me the confidence that I can change the lives of these underprivileged children — for which I came back to my roots after quitting a good job in Delhi.”
Jha, who was born into a humble family, studied in a village school and started learning English when he was in Class IX, has opened several free coaching schools in many villages where students of vernacular schools get special attention in learning English. And when COVID-19 broke out, he found many children in the tribal villages of Alipurduar district out of school. He, along with his wife, then started these coaching schools which helped the children continue their education during the tough times.
“One teacher in my village refused to teach me English when I was in Class VIII. When my father requested him to teach me, he not only refused but insulted my father and ‘‘predicted’ that I won’t be able to do anything in life. So, when I established myself as a journalist in Delhi, I thought I must stand by my village children who were facing similar situations. That’s why I decided to quit my job and came back to my roots,” explained Jha.
“We were successful in discouraging many children from dropping out of school, and gave them assurance that we were there for them. It has given me immense satisfaction. We also provided a lot of books and learning materials to the tribal children as many people joined us in our work,” Jha, who is lovingly called ‘Boi Dada’ (Book Dada) as he distributes books to the helpless children, said.
In the meantime, in 2017, Jha and his wife started a mainstream school in Cooch Behar — Epic Public School — which concentrated on imparting real-life learning. They also engaged the students in real-life organic farming which proved to be a game changer as students not only learnt about farming but also understood the value of food, the importance of conserving nature and developed respect for farmers. In 2022, the school bagged an innovative school award for this work. Not only did Jha’s school change the education scenario in Cooch Behar, the school provided them with some kind of financial stability and helped them stand by the underprivileged children of North Bengal.
While Jha was doing all these activities, his association with Karimul Hak resulted in a book on the noble man. In 2021, Jha’s book on Karimul Hak — Bike Ambulance Dada — was published. The book was one of the most inspirational books of the year. Now this book will be shown as a mainstream Bollywood movie.
His next book — Modern Buddha — will be published this year. Modern Buddha, which is somewhat autobiographical in nature, is a fiction which deals with the exact meaning of ‘success’ in life.
“For me, real success is not what you achieve in life but, at the end of the day, what you do for others and how many lives you can change for the better,” Jha concluded.
from Latest News, Breaking News, LIVE News, Top News Headlines, Viral Video, Cricket LIVE, Sports, Entertainment, Business, Health, Lifestyle and Utility News | India.Com https://ift.tt/5rC2yWz