Living in a city far from home was the least of the problems Shravali Bhagwat Kalyankar, Suchitha Shirode and Varsha Veer had to face. And for Usha Garware, taking care of household chores as her parents went to work in their farm was not the only thing she had to manage.

The four partially / completely blind girls from Fergusson College passed their Class XII examinations with first division. They said they owe it to their hard work and efforts of their professors.
Students of Class XII (Arts), Kalyankar scored 65 per cent marks, Shirode scored 72.33 per cent, Veer 64 per cent and Garware 69 per cent marks. Shirode hails from a village in Solapur, Veer is from Ahmednagar and Kalyankar from Aurangabad. The three live in a hostel on Fergusson College Road.

Studying for the examinations was a lot easier with the help of mp3 player in which all the chapters of the subjects they opted for were recorded. "I had trouble understanding a few chapters of psychology. My classmate helped me by staying back after class hours and explaining them to me," said 20-year-old Kalyankar, who plans to enroll for a bachelor's degree in education and become a teacher. Veer, Garware and Shirode share the dream of becoming political science professors after they complete their masters from Fergusson College.

Although Garware lives in Hinjewadi with parents, it is quite an ordeal for her to travel the distance to her college everyday. "Even if I insist, my parents don't let me go to the farm to help them. They ask me to stay home and study," said 18-year-old Gaware. Shirode gives credit for her good results to her professors at Nivante Institute, Vidya Nagar. "The institute taught me more than the syllabus. I participated in competitions like elocution, dramatics and went for field trips with other students. It boosted my confidence, which helped me get good results," says 20-year-old Shirode, who wants to become a college professor.

Nineteen-year-old Veer regrets not having put much effort into her studies from the beginning of the academic year. "If only I was more diligent, I would have scored above 70 per cent," she said.

Source: The Indian Express