Safina Begum with her parents in Gangapur village in Beldanga, 180km from Calcutta. Picture by Partha Biswas

Behrampore, June 29: A rickshaw-puller’s daughter in Murshidabad, who has seldom had more than one dress a year or two good meals a day, has qualified to study at a medical college in Calcutta but that may still remain a dream.

Safina Begum’s father has to rustle up around three times the money he earns in a month to pay for her admission.

Apart from the initial deposit of Rs 6,500, Sahadot Biswas has to shell out Rs 750 a month in tuition fees and hostel charges. “I have never seen such a huge amount (Rs 6,500) in my life,” he said.

For Sahadot, Safina’s brilliance has become a cause for worry. He said: “Paying for my three other children’s education will become impossible if I have to admit Safina to a medical college.”

The girl had studied in a local madarsa till Class X and scored around 94 per cent in the board exams.

An NGO sponsored her plus-II education and put her up in its hostel in Howrah.

That was the first time she got to study under electric lights or go to sleep under a fan.

She got 82.4 per cent in her higher secondary and ranked 247 in the state joint entrance examination.

The rank makes her eligible to study in one of the better medical colleges in Calcutta.

Safina had “always dreamt of becoming a doctor” since hearing about a boy from her village, Gangapur, who became a surgeon.

Obaidur Rahman had studied in Bhabta Azizia High Madarsa, where she too went, some two decades ago.

“But sitting in my hut in Gangapur and studying by a kerosene lamp, I never thought that I’d come this far one day, to the doorstep of a medical college,” said the 19-year-old girl.

Safina grew up in a mud hut where four siblings studied together in the fading light of a lone lantern.

“Seeing their sister study seriously, my other children — Shabir, 17, Arif, 15, and Sakina, 14 — have also become good students,” said Sahadot.

Shabir cleared his Class X board exams with over 75 per cent.

The siblings walk 2km to their school every day.

A trader from Gangapur who has a shop in Calcutta had introduced Safina to the NGO, Al Amin Mission.

Its secretary, Nurul Islam, said: “Safina is very intelli- gent and we feel proud to have helped her with her studies.”

Told about her father’s worries, Nurul added: “If the government or other sponsors do not come forward, we will make sure her dream comes true.”

The mission based in Howrah also has residential schools in Calcutta, Murshidabad and South Dinajpur. Only the Howrah and Calcutta schools offer higher secondary education. But these schools don’t have board affiliation and students appear for the final exa-ms from other institutions.

Safina had taken her higher secondary exams from a school in Hooghly.

The mission takes in students through admission tests but makes an exception for “brilliant ones” like Safina.

Sahadot said: “I and my wife Baharun never went to school. Now that Safina has turned out to be such a good student, we want to see her fulfil her dreams.”