Lucknow, 6 May (HS): Mohammad Irfan, the son of a farm labourer in Uttar Pradesh’s Chandauli, has won the Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Sanskrit Shiksha Parishad Board’s Uttar Madhyama-II (class 12) examinations, scoring 82.7% and outscoring approximately 14,000 kids. Along with other disciplines, the Board requires Sanskrit language and literature as two obligatory topics.
Irfan (17), who aspires to teach Sanskrit, is the only Muslim among the top 20 scores in the classes 10 and 12. Salauddin, Irfan’s proud father, recalls getting Irfan enrolled to Sampurnanand Sanskrit Government institution since it was the only institution whose fees he could afford. “I am a farm labourer earning Rs 300 per day and working a few days per month.”
“I couldn’t afford to send Irfan to a private or other school,” said Salauddin, a Jindaspur village resident. Salauddin stated that Irfan was always good in school and had an interest in Sanskrit from the first day of school.
“He was so focused on his studies that he never complained about anything, not even our small house or the bare necessities. We don’t even have a cemented house,” he added, adding that the family received funds for the construction of a pucca house through a government program about a month ago.
“I’m not sure why people associate a language with a religion. A Hindu can be very good at learning Urdu, and a Muslim can be very good at learning Sanskrit,” he continued.
Salauddin stated that Irfan’s family will not prevent him from pursuing his passion. “Sanskrit was a compulsory subject in junior school, and Irfan developed an interest in the language. He now intends to pursue Shastri (equal to BA) and Acharya (similar to MA) degrees before seeking employment as a Sanskrit instructor,” he explained.
(This news is generated from a syndicated feed and has not been written or edited by the staff of Hubli Express)
