Silchar: Defying all odds, 16-year-old Jeet Das from Assam’s Silchar has cleared the High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) examination this year with flying colours.
Jeet, who left his studies just six months before his HSLC exam and became a construction worker to support his family financially, cracked the board exam this year securing 83% with letter marks (80 marks) in four subjects.
He lives in a single-room house located on National Highway, Silchar, with his parents and grandmother.
Though Jeet’s result has brought new hopes for the family, but he is unsure whether he would be able to continue his studies owing to his family’s financial situation.
He said, “We live in a one-room house and I’ve set up my study table in a corner of the room. My mother works as a maid and I want to study but how can I pressurize my parents? I am happy about my result but this is temporary.”
Jeet put his studies on the back burner and began working as a construction worker to eke out a living as he was left with no other choice. “I always wanted to first complete my course and then utilize the rest of the time by working as a construction worker. Initially, I used to study for six hours and work for the rest of the time,” he added.
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While talking to EastMojo, Jeet’s mother Ganga Das said, “We are helpless and poor. We want him to study but our hands are tied. I work as a maid and this is not enough for us to feed our family. How can I make up for the expenses of his studies? This thought haunts me so much that I couldn’t help my child. But if needed, I will work more but Jeet has to study.”
Jeet wants to continue his studies and aspires to become a banker someday. He said that his grandmother is his biggest inspiration. Jeet’s grandmother said, “I too want to work as a maid and want my grandchild to study but age is not permitting me to do so. But I’ll do whatever it takes and make him study and someday he’ll be a banker and open an account for me.”
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