Leopards, elephants or gruelling poverty, these students are unfazed

They may have never heard of author-civil rights activist Maya Angelou, but they live by her words.

“I can be changed by what happens to me, but I refuse to be reduced by it,” Angelou wrote. Gutsy students from some of the remotest corners of north Bengal follow this maxim regularly.

On Saturday, many students braving various odds were felicitated and scholarships were handed over to them at the third edition of the IIHM Presents The Telegraph School Awards for Excellence 2025 North Bengal in association with The Bhawanipur Education Society College & PCM Group & co-sponsored by SiP Abacus.

Like Day One, the second and concluding day of the two-day event was also held at Birla Divya Jyoti School auditorium in Uttarayon, Siliguri.

“We have extended our support to them so that they can continue braving the odds and excel in their lives,” said Barry O’Brien, convener and trustee of The Telegraph Education Foundation.

Roshan Oraon

A student of Class V, Roshan, 11, lost his father at childhood. His home is in the remote Magurmari forest busty of Rajadanga panchayat in Kranti block of Jalpaiguri. His mother Sabita is the only earning member of the five-member family, who makes around ₹130 per day as a daily-rated worker.

The student of Rajadanga Penda Mohammed Higher Secondary School lives 8km away from his school. He walks 8km or hitches a ride from a kind villager, braving forests, where there is every possibility of encountering a leopard or wild elephant. “I cannot count the number of times I’ve faced elephants and leopards on the way,” he said.

Of his three older sisters, one is married, one ailing and one studies in Class XIII. “Her name is Runa and she is very brave,” he said. “I started going to school regularly because of the midday meal, but now I love it. I want to be a teacher when I grow up,” he said.

Ruma Sarkar

A first-year student of English honours at Ananda Chandra College of Jalpaiguri has grown up battling poverty. She wants to help her father, Ranjit, the sole earning member of the family, by doing odd jobs, and her homemaker mother Jamuna. That didn’t stop her from clearing her HS exam with 91 per cent marks from Kranti Devijhora Higher Secondary School.

Among three siblings, her elder sister is physically challenged, and the younger sister studies in Class IX.

“I tutor a few students so that I can afford the expenses of my studies. After I complete my graduation, I would like to appear in competitive exams to get a secure job,” she said.

Usharshi Roy

Even though she got 92 per cent in her higher secondary exam this year, Usharshi Roy is worried. From college admission, tuition to transportation and books, there are huge expenses.

Her father, Ghanshyam, used to be a daily-wage labourer till illness stopped his work three years ago, and her mother Sanchita manages the household chores.

An alumna of Kranti Devijhora Higher Secondary School, she is doing her geography honours at Anand Chandra College in Jalpaiguri. After teaching a batch of tuition students in the morning, she helps her mother in household chores and rushes to her college in Jalpaiguri by changing two buses. In the evening, she returns home, teaches students again, helps her mother cook dinner and continues with her studies until late at night.

It is hectic, but her dream drives her. “I want to become a teacher,” she said.

Sumit Sarkar

A resident of Bhujaripara of Kranti block under Malbazar subdivision, this teenager can’t move without the help of crutches. Somebody has to escort him to Debijhora High School every day. Yet, Sumit will sit for his higher secondary exam next year.

“I don’t have any target as such, except that after my higher secondary, I will complete my graduation and look for a job. Ideally, I want to be a teacher,” Sumit said.

Sumit’s father Nilkamal is a daily wage earner while his mother Basanti is a homemaker. His younger sister studies in Class IX.