In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the Siliguri region, a mobile library has been launched for an extensive career counselling programme aimed at first-generation learners in tea gardens and forest villages.

The sessions, which have started on June 9 at the Tirrihanna tea estate near Bagdogra, have been specially designed to support students for competitive exams for government jobs.

The counselling campaign is being led by Anirban Nandy, an assistant professor of computer and information science at the North Bengal University and a PhD from IIT-Kharagpur, along with his wife, Poulomi Chaki Nandy, an entrepreneur and research assistant also affiliated with IIT-Kharagpur. The duo have been educating the children, especially girls, through their mobile library since 2015.

Anirban said that as of now, they covered three tea estates.

"We started with the Tirrihanna tea estate on June 9, and then on the next two Sundays, we covered the Jabra tea estate in upper Bagdogra and the Marapur tea estate in the foothills of Mirik. We have scheduled one more counselling session for tomorrow (Monday) at Ashapur tea estate near Panighata,” he said.

The couple plans to reach out to students and youths in 82 more locations across the tea gardens and forest villages of Siliguri sub-division and the neighbouring districts of Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar districts during the upcoming weekends.

“The idea was born out of a pressing need to bridge the awareness gap between the aspirations of rural students and the actual opportunities available to them. We are the first to bring structured career counselling directly into tea gardens and forest villages. These people sit for various competitive exams, but many of them are still unaware of the realities of today’s job market. They do not know what to study to secure a future,” Anirban said.

The sessions, they said, focus on guiding students toward careers in engineering, medicine (MBBS and GNM), the Indian Navy, NDA, and general academic courses.

The initiative also seeks to highlight emerging fields such as data science, AI and computer applications sectors, where job opportunities are rapidly expanding.

“We are encouraging them to explore these newer fields, which are in high demand right now. At the first session, over 100 students turned up, and in the subsequent two sessions, around 200 students came for each. For many, it was their first exposure to the intricacies of competitive government exams. We explained not only the types of exams offered by various government bodies but also the pathways and strategies to prepare for them,” said Poulami.

She said that despite the lack of resources, talent was in plenty in these areas.

“Last year, a boy from MM Terai Tea Estate cleared the UPSC exam. These children have enormous potential, all they just need someone to show them the right path,” she said.