Faced with a sense of deprivation, hardship and abject poverty, Gadi Bala Durga, a 15-year-old orphan from the city, is desperately groping for support to scale heights in life. All the adversities gave in to her burning desire to make it big in her school final exam.
Life turned miserable for Durga when she lost her father Ramakrishna, a rickshaw-puller, at the age of 13. She became an orphan after her mother Neelamma, a domestic help, too died next year. Her aunt took Durga to Pothunuru in Denduluru mandal to bring her up. Her hopes were dashed when the girl was not allowed to go to school and forced to work as domestic help in the houses of landlords in the village. She was also forced to graze sheep in the fields. Beating and torture became part of her life.
Durga, however, found the silver lining when her school teachers enquired into the reasons for her being irregular to school. They rescued the girl from her aunt and handed her over to members of Childline, a non- government organisation. She was rehabilitated in the rescue home at Denduluru with the help of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and took her Class-X public exam recently. She got B- Grade against all odds. “All my teachers helped me continue my education and I am determined to join the teaching profession,” Durga told The Hindu .
She is willing to join the CEC group in Intermediate in an aided women’s college at Tanuku. Suryachakraveni, District Girl Child Protection Officer (DCPO), said efforts were under way to shift the girl to the ‘College at home’ at Tanuku enabling her to pursue her Intermediate education. Moved by the girl’s plight, the college Principal Aruna offered to admit the girl with 50 per cent fee concession and a local scribe volunteered to sponsor her two-year Intermediate education.
The scribe credited Rs. 2,000 into the college bank account towards the girl’s fee, textbooks and uniform for the first year. Ms. Chakraveni said Durga would be admitted to the college shortly.
