Years ago in 2004, MiD DAY gave Zainab Dalal, then a Std III student, some company on a frustrating and weary journey to several city schools, where she sought admission for her further studies. As one school after another rejected her applications and principals shut their doors firmly in her face, hope was all but lost (‘This girl wants to study but no school will take her’, June 9, 2004, MiD DAY). Zainab had just completed Std III from a school for hearing impaired students, and was desperate to join a ‘regular’ school with other ‘regular’ kids her age, to complete her schooling.

Pics/Sayed Sameer Abedi