Breaking the Status Quo
Vishal Kumar
It was in 2006/2007 that Vishal joined Gyan Shakti Vidyalaya and turned his attention to education as a continuous, holistic and transformative process. He was, earlier, enrolled in a Govt school, which typically meant sitting in a class & waiting for it to get over. Once school would get over, he would immediately close the books, dump his bag in a corner of his shanty and go out to play. There was no guidance at home and no electricity as well. His parents would be farming furiously, struggling each day to make ends meet, unable to help him with studies but always supportive of him.
Hailing from the state of West Bengal, Vishal’s family journeyed to Haryana with his parents looking for better prospects. Having dropped out after class six in his village school, Vishal’s father was never in permanent employment. An impoverished background and absence of any skill plunged him into temporary and indefinite sources of income through selling fruits, working as a daily wager at construction sites, farming etc, depending on the city he would be in. When Vishal, who is now 26 years old, younger of the two siblings, joined GSV, the family gained stability, to begin with. His parents set themselves up in a jhuggi alongside the DND (Delhi NOIDA Direct) flyway and joined the surrounding community in growing wheat, rice etc.
After getting admission in the Govt school in Delhi, facilitated by GSV, Vishal began to attend the ‘school after school’ held daily in a park in NOIDA to get additional support through class/subject-wise assigned teachers in academics. Regular educational and recreational trips, interactive visits by several corporates and individuals both Indian and international were organised along with activities like theatre and sports. The meaning of ‘education’ began to change for Vishal who now viewed it as a means to break out of the status quo. In 2015 he completed class 12 and joined a diploma (12 months) training program held by the Max Research Centre, Greater NOIDA. After completing it he got a job at a hospital which he pursued alongside a degree course in Radiology through distance learning, from the University of Rajasthan. He attended classes 2-3 times a week held in Punjabi Bagh, travelling approx. 80 kms. to and from NOIDA.
Vishal currently, works as a technician in the Radiology department at Fortis hospital, Greater NOIDA. With both Vishal and his older brother working, the family has bought a house in Faridabad (Haryana). Tragically he lost his father in 2018 to a fatal fall at a construction site. Their mother took to doing house chores like cooking, cleaning etc for earning, something that she continues to do now as well. According to Vishal, education has the power to bring about a change. He deeply values his learnings at GSV. “At the on-job training I saw myself different from others but never inferior to anyone, and this is something that GSV has gifted me. I am valued today because of the ‘Gyan’ I acquired. A good environment builds a good personality,” says Vishal.
In his message to the students of GSV he says, “Take your education seriously and see how it converts you into a very valued individual. Any challenge that comes your way also comes with the power to overcome it. Don’t run away, face and fight it and win over. These challenges help us progress.”
