Bihar’s Pride: Super-30 Institute

by Indra

July 17, 2006

By now Super-30 Institute started by additional DGP Abhayanand and mathematician Anand Kumar has become something that every person Bihar can be proud of. Jainesh Sinha, Harsh Pallav, Saurav Kumar, and Roshan Kumar are students from less-privileged backgrounds today in IITs curtsey the Institute. They have come out with an innovative way of "give back to Bihar" promise they made their gurus at the institution.

Abhayanand says, "This group of IIT students was in the state during the summer vacation. I gave them the task of hunting for 5-6 talented children forced by poverty to work as child labourers. And they have done an excellent job."

The four disciples of the Institute took the task given by their guru in all earnestness and went around on a rigorous scouting trip, visiting street children, those living on railway platforms and others in remand homes. And let us look at the two of "six gems" that they have discovered in a short period.

·Seven-year-old Pramod has never attended school. But he adds large numbers like a wizard.

·Eight-year-old Sippu has extraordinary memory and reasoning abilities. He can solve mirror-image questions of the sort found in recruitment tests for bank officers and CBI sleuths.

As per the plan, the six children will appear before Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as well as prominent citizens at a show where they will display their talents. Jainesh Sinha, a member of the search team is now preparing them for the show.

Abhayanand appears to be a philosopher when he says, "We help talented poor students to crack the IIT entrance. But there are talents who will never be able to reach our institute, as they don't get an opportunity to study. We want society to ensure these talents study, otherwise it will be a national loss."

Super-30 co-founder mathematician Anand Kumar, has thrown open his house to provide shelter to the children. He says, "Their plight reminds me about my difficult days. Particularly, when I had an invitation from Cambridge but did not have the money to go. I ran from pillar to post for help but none came forward. From then on I decided I'll do my best to help the talented who are throttled by poverty."

Abhayanand expects that "the government and respected members of society" will come forward to sponsor the studies of these children. <b>And I am sure that will happen. But will these children require some mentorship that only a good missionary and visionary teacher such as Abhayanand and Anand Kumar can provide? Will they not get lost in our traditional education system without some inspiring intellectuals?

Why can't IITs and other national institutes produce some more Abhayanand and Anand Kumar for taking up the affirmative task of the underprivileged children? Why can't the group of four talk about the case history of search hunting a little more loudly, so that others can also follow it in other states? For a country of billion plus with 50% requiring some support and subsidy to lead a life worth living, India must have many more or the two As. And the story also provides a roadmap that others, even the country's education planners, can emulate.

I wish our media- both print and small screen would cover the story more extensively and made it known to the people of India.

Will some one from Patna provide more details of the story?

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