A 78-year-old man in Mizoram Myanmar border New Hruaikawn village of Champhai district walks on foot 3 kilometres every day to attend High School at Hruaikawn village, sporting a school uniform and carrying a bag full of textbools, Lalringthara will be back to the class room from Thursday.
Lalringthara enrolled as a class IX student for this academic session at Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) High School in Hruaikawn village as there is no High School in his.
Born in 1945 at Khuangleng village on Champhai district, he faced challenges, losing his father at a young age. Supported by his mother, he studied till class 2.
He and his mother migrated to New Hruaikawn village from Khuangleng in 1995 and resumed his studies from Class 5 in the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) Upper Primary School at the village in 1998.
His educational career was disrupted for years due to abject poverty and when he finally passed class 8, he was compelled to get admission in Hruaikawn village as a class 9 student.
Later, under the care of distant relatives with little regard for education, Lalringthara worked in the paddy fields to make ends meet. Yet, he became literate in the Mizo Language and currently serves as a church chowkidar.
His desire to learn English drove him to return to school and his main ambition is to be able to write applications in English and to understand the news telecasted on the television.
He said that age won’t deter him from pursuing knowledge. Classes have started for the new academic session across the state on April 5. Lalringthara will attend regular classes from Thursday and starts new chapter of his life.
