As we travelled further from the Hyderabad airport in Shamshabad with its shining industrial parks and commercial hubs through Rangareddy and then Nalgonda districts to meet Vidyadhan families, the landscape became increasingly dominated by paddy and cotton fields interspersed with clusters of industrial units.

These are stories of families and individuals struggling and emerging more empowered in the process revealing how critical it can be to: harness your capabilities; to train and enhance your potential with whatever means at hand; at times take the risk of making tough choices in your life and for those dependent on you; and, of course, pursue higher education if you dream of doing so.

Shiva of Dasari

Shiva’s grandparents had no land – they worked as daily wage workers in the fields and at construction sites in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh. They even worked for extended periods on the world-renowned Nagarjuna Sagar dam, one of the temples of modern India, built across the Krishna River between 1955 and 1967. Their son (Shiva’s father) decided to train as a diesel engine mechanic at a local ITI, after completing class 12. In 2011, he started working at the bus depot in the nearby town of Narkatpalli as a bus mechanic starting with a monthly salary of rupees five thousand. The next year, he constructed a small two-room house in place of their hut. Today, he earns about twenty-five thousand a month. Along with his elder brother, who stays with him, they have, over time, bought a little land on which paddy grows. Early mornings are devoted to looking after the crop. When we visited the fields, the standing paddy crop was nearly ripe for harvesting. Excessive rains this monsoon seem to have delayed the cycle a little.

Supported by his parents and with help from Vidyadhan and taking a loan under the Vidyalakshmi scheme, Shiva pursued B. Tech. in CSE. Today, he is employed in a Pune-based company, ‘Navdhan Capital’ and the family is constructing an additional room in the front yard of their house.

Kavya of Narkatpalli

They were from neighbouring villages, fell in love but had to leave their homes to be together. Those were happy days, living in the small town of Narkatpalli in Nalgonda district; each dawn was a new day to look forward to, but as fate would have it, he fell seriously ill a few years after they had shifted. After a long struggle with illness, he passed away a few years back leaving her to care for their two daughters – Kavya and Navya, who were then still studying in a local government school. Suddenly, there was no money in the house. Guided by her daughters’ teacher, she quickly enrolled for a very basic training in nursing and joined at a private hospital down the highway ten kilometers away. The salary was meagre but she managed to keep her daughters in school. Then Kavya learnt of Vidyadhan from one of her teachers and applied.

Today, they live in a small one-room rented accommodation in Narkatpalli town, paying Rupees 2,500 for the room. She works as a security guard at the same hospital earning 12,000/- a month, travelling by the state transport bus in which travel for women is free. Kavya has just completed her B. Tech. and is looking forward to a placement in the government as a Junior Engineer or in the private sector. Her younger sister Navya in B. Tech. Second Year is also a bright Vidyadhan scholar. We look forward to adding to this story in a few months’ time.

Shiva of Thirumalagiri

Shiva and his elder sister have lost both their parents. His sister is married and Shiva lives with his uncle, to whom he is like a son, in Thirumalagiri village. The uncle runs a small grocery shop next to their two-room house in Thirumalagiri. As it is the only such shop in the village, it has enough sales to provide for them. As we stood in the shop, two children appeared at the shop window asking for toffees, and then another child came running asking for peanuts. After completing his B. Tech in Civil Engineering, Shiva has completed apprenticeship for being a licensed Land Surveyor, while applying for the post of Assistant Executive Engineer in a few departments in the Telangana government. He expects to receive his Land Surveyor license from the Chief Minister, shortly.

Avinash of Suryanayak Thanda

Avinash is undergoing internship in Vijayawada on a stipend, having completed his 4-year Veterinary Medicine course from Cuddapah. Underlining the criticality of a degree in veterinary medicine for the country, in their book, “Breaking the Mould – Reimagining India’s Economic Future” – Raghuram Rajan and Rohit Lamba make the point:

“Despite its massive livestock and poultry population, 535 and 851 million (possibly 2022 figures), respectively, India graduates too few veterinarians, approximately 3000 per year.” As a result, “India has one vet for nearly 10,000 livestock animals. Despite the cultural and economic importance of farm animals, this vocation attracts little interest and few resources.”

For the Lambada community of Suryanayak Thanda tribal village, he is already a star and a role model. The Lambadas are one of Telangana’s largest tribal communities and depend mainly on animal rearing and agriculture. Avinash’s parents own 2 acres of land near a canal, in which a ripening paddy crop stood as the sun set.  When paddy is not growing, they plant cotton or chilli. They also work as daily wage workers in the cotton-picking season, and at times at construction sites or do Hamali work – loading/ unloading goods in the marketplace. The rates for different types of work differ; for cotton picking it is less. Their two daughters are married, residing in the nearby village of Kodaad.

While working as a vet doctor, Avinash wants to help the residents of his village and neighbouring villages take better care of their livestock and poultry.

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