Pune: These women brave all odds to (l)earn a living

There is no age limit when it comes to learning 150 women who are earning and being educated in a Punebased school meant for adults are proof of the sameMeet 40yearold Rajni Ohal a resident of Market Yard in Pune who was thrown out of her house when she sixmonths pregnant 12 years back After delivering a son she went back to her husband but he thrashed and threatens to kill her and her son In the meantime her husband married another woman and is settled She initially approached a lawyer but later having no knowledge of law and being illiterate she left the case and started living with her son and brother in Market Yard To sponsor her livelihood she worked as a doorkeeper in a Punebased private school Now she is studying in Class X and has quit work She used to wash utensils in other housesRamabai Ranade runs Sevasadan a school for adult from Class I to Class X Itrsquos a Marathi medium school which provides free of cost education to many adults from the age group of 14 to senior citizens Many women are studying right from Class I to Class X Significantly not even one woman has failed her tenth in the last four yearsKaushalya alias Kavita PasalkarJagtapRajani recalls ldquoFrom childhood I was keen in studies but our parents were poor and they could not afford education of three siblings Later I quit my education and assisted my mother as a hawker As I turned 18 my mother forced me to marry After spending two years with my husband I realised he was not good human and tortured me lot He threw me out when I was pregnant and did not accept me even after I delivered My brother was my strength and he told me that I have to live for my son Nikhil who is the only ray of hope Accordingly I worked day and night so as not to be a burden on my brothers and also for the education of my sonrdquoShe went on ldquoInitially I earned Rs 3000 and could afford for his education But as he is growing up his fees are increasing But when I went for job interviews many denied me good jobs as I was not even tenth pass Later I went to various schools for admission but was unlucky It was then that I came to know about Ramabai Ranadersquos school I took up admission in class eight and now I am in tenth standard My son Nikhil is a 12yearold boy and is studying in class eight Initially when I used to take my sonrsquos education he used to claim studies are very difficult To show him it is not difficult I picked up studies and now we both study together He helps me in English and Marathi grammar while I help him in MathematicsrdquoShe added ldquoOn Saturday I had my English board exams between 11 am to 2 pm It was fine Daily after my examination my son checks my papers and scrutinises whether I have written it right or wrong He claims that I have written well and can score 60 marks He is the biggest strength to me Now he acts like a father to me when it comes to studies After my tenth I want to pursue college and later study law I want to be a lawyer and help many other women like merdquoSimilarly 51yearold Kaushalya alias Kavita PasalkarJagtap IS studying in class sixth and was the topper in class five with 78 She is a mother of two children and her husband is working as a painter Her elder son Pawan is in Std XII commerce stream and daughter Tejaswini is also preparing for Std XKaushalya gets up early in the morning and leaves her house around 830 am She works as a domestic maid in six houses and later around 1130 am from her house she goes on cycle to school She learns there till 530 pm After returning home she cooks for her husband and children and studies late at nightKaushalya recalls ldquoI come from a poor background in which girls are not allowed to study Somehow my parents managed to educate me till fourth standard Later I quit studies for my brother who was a handicap I married afterwards but in my heart I wanted to study furtherShe went on ldquoTwo year back my husband took me to this school and claimed that it is was our 20th marriage anniversary gift Last year I was in fifth standard Initially studies and understanding science and mathematics was difficult for me but history and civics can be easily understand due to some of the historical serials on television and Bollywood moviesrdquo She added ldquoMy children take up my studies and I teach my husband what I did today and that how its easy for me to understand and grab things I have made a point to study daily which helps me lotrdquoSwati Walimbe Principal of the school said ldquoItrsquos a really difficult task to teach as most of the women are mostly in the age group of 35 to 40 plus onwards Entire schooling is free as it is government funded Itrsquos a challenges and our number has been increasing To teach them we use basic information that they observe on daily bases In children once we teach a chapter we do not repeat it but for such students the same chapter is taught thrice I am glad that in four years all our batches who were in tenth passed Some women wears uniform but its not compulsory as many are working and some of them still hide from their family that they are studyingrdquoPriya Nighotkar class teacher of Class VI and Class X said ldquoInitially we had some ten women taking up education but now the number has increased to 150 Itrsquos a definite progress Most of the women are divorcees or widows After their SSC we assist them in career guidance Now many of these women have got jobs as nurses teachers and done ITR courses They are taking their own classes and are running small businessesrdquo