Abhishek Choudhari, TNN Jun 10, 2012, 06.41AM IST
NAGPUR: Naresh Charde toils almost 12 hours a day as a personal driver for a city businessman to eke out a meagre Rs 5,000 monthly income all the while hoping to provide a better future for his children. On Saturday, 38-year-old Charde became the first person in state to apply for school admission for his six-year-old daughter, Samidha, under the 25% free seat, as provided under the Right To Education (RTE) Act.
Long hours on the road behind the wheels make Charde's eyes look groggy, but that hasn't stopped them from dreaming big. "I grew up in utter poverty and have missed out on many opportunities in life due to it. But I have big plans for both my daughters and when I read the government advertisement in a vernacular newspaper about free seats, I was overjoyed," Charde told TOI.
He has applied for admission at South Point School at Omkar Nagar, under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category. Since he meets the eligibility criteria it is unlikely that his application will get rejected, subject to all the paperwork being in order.
JS Saharia, additional chief
secretary of school education department, said, "This is fantastic news for all of us that a parent has started the process to seek admission under the special quota. I would also congratulate the school for providing the parent with all requisite information and forms and not shunning them. Every school should realize that RTE is the law now and it has to be implemented no matter what. We hope to receive similar inputs from other corners of the state soon."
For Charde, who has studied up to Std XII, this is just the first step towards the grand plan he has for his daughters. "My father was a tailor and he earned about Rs 20 per day. There were five mouths to feed, so we struggled every step of the way. I am good at drawing but our economic conditions did not permit me to pursue my dream of becoming an art teacher. I just won't let that happen to my daughters, they will rise above this poverty by completing their education and following their dreams," said an emotional Charde.
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