Night school students shine

PUNE: Twenty-three-year-old Sagar Gundu Pawar had never imagined scoring 72.55 per cent marks at the secondary school certificate (SSC std X) exams. But, the impossible came true at his night school.
Hailing from Chandgad taluka, Kolhapur, Sagar was forced to take up work in the city eight years ago due to financial issues. Always a topper at his village school, he took up a full-time job as a waiter in a hotel.
"I had given up hope of completing my studies.But my colleagues motivated me and instilled the belief in me that I could move on to higher studies," says Sagar, who passed out from Poona Night School and Junior College, Bajirao Road.
"I realise now that education is very important and it can change one's life. I want to become a computer engineer and will work hard to achieve my goal," says Sagar.
He thanks his employer and night school teachers for providing further encouragement. "A few months before my exams began, my boss often allowed me to take leave and spend more time studying. I knew I would score good marks, but topping my school is a pleasant surprise," says Sagar, who enjoys studying English, maths and science.
His batchmate Neeraj Jaiswal passed out with 52.65 per cent marks. Working as a painting contractor for the last four years, Jaiswal hopes to become a collector some day. "I had to stay off school for two years as I had to work to earn a livelihood. I'm glad that my younger brother and sister are in school and studying well. I don't ever want them to struggle the way I did," says 18-year-old Neeraj.
Nine candidates, out of a total ten from the school, passed SSC this year, said principal, J D Mangalvedekar. "The students are working in hotels, printing presses, and as milk and newspaper vendors. We tried to give them better training by having extra four hour-long classes every Sunday," he said.
After failing Std VII at day school some eight years ago, Ketan Pankar chose to stay off school and began lending a hand at his father's clothes store. But parental guidance helped him get back on track with training at Abasaheb Atre Night School, Rasta Peth.
On Friday, his family celebrated his success as he topped his night school with 61.2 per cent. "My parents told him a shop alone can't bring in financial security and stability. Now he is thinking of opting for commerce," says 23-year-old Ketan's younger sister, Nayan.
Ketan is one of the eight students who cleared SSC this year from the night school. "For the first time, our night school has achieved pass percentage of 90. This can be contributed to the efforts taken by the staff and the students," said Dilip Acharya, headmaster of Abasaheb Atre Night School.
Out of the 18 candidates at St Joseph's Night School, Camp, who appeared for SSC exams, five passed with Paresh Gaikwad scoring the highest with 59 per cent marks. "The pass percentage for our night school this year has been 22 per cent, slightly higher than last year. We had provided extra coaching on all subjects, during vacation breaks," says Joe Rebello from the night school's administration.