A schoolteacher who provided a scholarship to one student six years back in memory of her brother has this year handed over the same to as many as 24 students.
Joeeta Basu’s brother, Joydeep Roy, passed away in April 2018, and ever since, Basu celebrates his birthday on April 11 by handing out scholarships.
This year, the scholarships were provided to students from Class IX to those who are pursuing undergraduate studies.
They are meritorious students with limited means to support themselves.
Of the 24 students, four are visually impaired.
One of the beneficiaries is Bidhan Roychowdhury who secured 83.2 per cent in higher secondary this year.
Bidhan’s father has a tea stall and struggles to earn enough for his family.
Then there is Rajdeep Kundu who is studying BCom from Maharaja Manindra Chandra College.
“Rajdeep thanked me profusely for the help. The scholarship helped him to pay his pending tuition fee. He struggles to pay his tuition fee every month,” said Basu, an economics teacher.
Basu said that without opportunities, these children might get lost.
“Education is the means by which they can come out of their vicious cycle of poverty. Education gives them the scope to earn a livelihood and become independent,” said the founder of the Joydeep Roy Memorial Foundation.
Joydeep was an MTech in computer science and a teacher in Chamba in Uttarakhand. He died in 2018.
“What better way to honour his role as a teacher,” said Basu.
Over the last six years, Basu has received overwhelming support for the initiative.
“I started with one student but over the years many people have come forward to help. As the number has grown, I have been able to reach out to more students every year,” said Basu.
“In fact, this year there are so many donors who have already promised help for next year. People want to help but they always do not get the right stage,” said Basu.
But it is not alone financial help that the students get.
“On the day of the award, they get to meet successful people from various fields,
including bureaucrats, doctors, engineers, lawyers and others. Many of them guide the students regarding their career path. Such support is also invaluable,” said Basu.
Four students from Howrah Vivekananda Siksha Kendra got scholarships in April this year.
“The scholarships help the students to buy textbooks and pay for transport. The money is also utilised for many other peripheral activities that support their education,” said Tanmoy Patra, founder of the NGO Howrah Vivekananda Siksha Kendra.