CBSE Class-10: Wheelchair-bound Anushka defeated deep barriers to secure 97.8%
What's the story
Fourteen-year-old Anushka Panda of Gurugram secured 97.8% in the CBSE Class-10 exams, but that's not what she is most proud of: she's just happy she didn't have to use the extra half-hour granted to differently-abled students during papers.
The wheelchair-bound teenager admits the journey was tougher for her than her peers.
Despite that, she ended up topping the differently-abled category and setting an example.
Disability
Family spends over Rs. 5cr annually on Anushka's treatment
Anushka suffers from muscular spinal atrophy. The genetic condition developed when she was 10-months-old. It affects her motor nerve cells in the spinal cord, thus hampering mobility.
So she needs a wheelchair and can't sit for too long.
Treatment, which is currently only available in the US, costs over Rs. 5.05cr each year, she says.
Discrimination
'Kept my self-esteem high despite a lot of harassment'
The teenager is witness to the discrimination that the disabled face in India. "As a child born with a physical disability, I have faced lots of harassment in my day-to-day life, from public places to areas of education," she says.
But despite the social and physical obstacles, she didn't want to be treated differently, except perhaps a special bench provided by her school, Suncity.
Success
After securing an impressive 489/500, Anushka gifted herself a pizza!
During preparations, she would attempt solving sample papers in 2.5 hours, the time granted to general candidates.
She had to take breaks every hour due to her condition.
But she emerged with flying colors: with 95 in English, 99 in History, 99 in Mathematics, 98 in Science, and 98 in Social Science, she secured a total of 489.
Her gift to herself? A pizza.
Others
Like her, Jebin Kausar of Assam is breaking imaginary limits
Anushka isn't the only one facing such hurdles. As many as 135 differently-abled candidates, dealing with their own problems, secured above 90% in CBSE Class-10. Twenty-one got more than 95%.
Some, like Jebin Kousar of Assam, have achieved things their healthy peers couldn't. Though Jebin is from the Assam education board, she aced her Class 10 exams by writing solely with her legs.
Plans
Anushka will now work towards becoming a software engineer
Anushka, a trained classical-singer who enjoys chess, wants to be a software-engineer with Google. She now plans to take up Science.
But she urges the society to change its views about the disabled.
Last July, she wrote to the PM and Director General of Drug Control, seeking help in treatment. She never received a reply.
We hope she gets all the assistance she needs.