Kislay Sharma: The Guy Who Took The Initiative

Sacrificing a prominent career which you have anticipated and choose a more socially responsible and a less attractive one is not everybody’s cup of tea. We can proudly say that many people of today’s young generation seriously consider their social responsibilities alongside their personal gains and career growth. But still it takes a hell lot of courage to refuse a high-profile job in order so that you may get the time to fulfill your social responsibilities.

Kislay Sharma, an inspirational youth who hails from Patna, Bihar did something similar. He completed his education from Patna. He completed B. Sc and M. Sc in Mathematics from the Patna Science College, Patna. When he was in the final year of his post-graduation, he got a huge opportunity to do a four-month internship at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University (NYU). He could have got a high-profile job anywhere. But instead, he decided to share the benefits of his education and talent with the underprivileged students of Bihar. His father, Dr. V. B. Singh, a physics teacher had a view that teaching should not be thought of as a mere profession, but also as a social responsibility. He held the view that education is the birth right of everyone. So unlike most other cases, where the parents would try to dissuade their son/daughter from pursuing such a career over the more lustrous ones, his parents supported him. Together the father and son laid the foundation of ‘Jagriti’ campaign.

Jagriti is a campaign which aims at preparing the students of 10th, 11th and 12th grades for their board exams. The Jagriti campaign was started in Patna in the year 2015 with the aim of giving free education to the students who come from poor financial background. Such students constitute 50-60% of the total number of students who are taught by Jagriti. The remaining students are the ones who can afford to pay the fees. In order to ascertain a student’s financial background, strict background checks are done. At Jagriti, students are coached in physics and mathematics. Kislay teaches mathematics, while his father conducts physics classes. The classes are conducted in a building which is owned by a family friend and rented on little amount, which has remained constant through successive years. Also, parent-teacher meetings are held every three months, so that parents are able to contribute to their ward’s development.

One of the big reasons why the Jagriti campaign was found is the dismal state of education in the state of Bihar. Public sector schools often fail to provide substantial education to their students due to the lack of properly educated teachers and other amenities. Few government schools are able to provide goog quality education. Private Sector schools are certainly a better choice but they charge way too much for a financially weak parent to pay. You can search on the Google and find out the ratio of the successful students to the unsuccessful ones, who appeared in Bihar State Board Examinations. The numbers speak for themselves. Moreover, last year the percentage of successful candidates dropped as low as 32% and 37% for the science and arts streams respectively.

The founders of Jagriti do not have the money to publicize their name through commercial advertisements. They are totally dependent on the words of their well-wishers and students for reaching out to more students. Kislay, one of the two founders took up teaching as a part-time education way back in 2012. It were his college days. It was then that he had realized the dismal and alarming state of education in Bihar, which later convinced him to take up teaching as a full time profession. His work has been recognized and he has been conferred the ‘Skill Development Award’ by the Government of Bihar in 2017. He has also laid out his future plans and aims at expanding the concept of Jagriti to other places as well. In future, he wants to induct students right from the eight standard up to 12th standard. He believes that 5-years of quality education would go a long way in shaping the future of a student.

There are about 150 students who are currently studying under the Jagriti campaign. Though the number seems small, in no way does it diminish the service Kislay Sharma and his father have provided the nation. We, at The Abstract People, salute Kislay Sharma and his father for their extraordinary effort in the field of education. We pray to God that their future endeavours be successful.

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