People say money can't buy happiness. I disagree. My father worked 12 hours a day, six days a week, and half-a-day on Sundays. He still struggled to put food on the table for his three kids. Money would have definitely added happiness to our childhood," says 38-year-old Tajinder Kumar, as he reminisces about his childhood in Ludhiana. Born in a small hamlet close to Jamalpur village, Kumar dreamt big. He wanted to become a mechanical engineer. But, every single time, poverty came in the way. "When he was in Class VIII, my brother had to quit school to support the family. I, being the youngest, was allowed to continue my education at a government school. Summers were excruciatingly hot and winters too cold. There were no desks or tables. I would carry a sheet along to sit on," he remembers vividly.

And so, when his family could not make even Rs 10 for his monthly school fee, Kumar took up a part-time job at a local PCO booth. "My mother and I would chase buffalo herders to collect dung laid spattered on the streets. We would then sell about 100 to 200 of these to make Rs 20. That is how I managed to complete Class X."