DEHRADUN: As many as 28 visually challenged students of Model School for the Visually Handicapped here attempted Class XII board exam this year, and for the first time, one of the students, Mohd ShahnawazAlam, scored an impressive 95℅ showing that his disability was not an impediment to academic success.Another blind student Ayushi Sharma from Jammu studying in Dehradun, scored 89.88℅. She told TOI, "I wanted to break the misconceptions that disabled people are less in any way. My aim is to become an IAS officer and work to improve facilities for the disabled and become an inspiration for others. Helen Keller and Modi are two people who inspire me."

Principal Kamalbir Singh Jaggi, a blind man who joined the school as principal in 2008, was elated by his students' performance, he told TOI, "I am proud of my students who have broken the myth that there has to be a dividing line between normal and disabled students. They use Braille language and audio tapes for study, and have scored high, on par with other students. They have score well even in the past, but for the first time, one of our students has scored 95%."

Speaking to TOI over phone from Lilja village in Bihar's Saharsa district, 19-year-old Shahnawaz said, "Former president Dr A P J Abdul Kalam is my role model, who taught us 'there is no point in losing hope, and we must chase our dreams and work hard to achieve them'.

"I am glad to score 95%, and want to take admission in Delhi University's BA history (honours) course (Shahnawaz has scored 100% in history). I aspire to become an IAS officer so that I can provide more facilities to disabled people, and give them hope that they can conquer their disabilities."
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Shahnawaz is the fourth child of five sons of Nehrun Nishan and Mohd Reza Hussain, a retired teacher, who has taken up farming in his native village.

Shahnawaz's brother Shahbaj Alam, who is preparing for competitive examinations in Delhi, was equally excited. "We are proud of my brother. He can't see, but has excelled due to his strong will," he said.

"All those students who have scored above 70% and want to pursue higher education, will be given a monthly scholarship of Rs 2,000 from NIEPVD. Besides, we have also got laptops for all of them to facilitate their further studies. Out of 28 students, 25 have scored over 70%," added Jaggi.

Three students scored 100/100 in history; four scored 100/100 in music. All 28 students are from humanities stream. They prepared for their exam with the help of Braille books and audio material.

The school is run under the aegis National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities (Divyangjan) (NIEPVD).