As per the report, she speaks 5 languages. I don't have her contact.
On 5/29/23, Shyam M. Sayanekar <[email protected]> wrote: > Highly commendable service. What is her mother tongue? If I want to help her > > in some way, can you share her contact details? > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "avinash shahi" <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Monday, May 29, 2023 12:13 PM > Subject: [AI] Swaminathan Natarajan reports the BBC: "The Indian woman who > writes exams for others who can't " > > > In 2007, a blind man asked Pushpa to guide him across a busy road in > Bengaluru, a teeming metropolis in southern India. After they reached > the other side, he made another request which changed her life. > > "He asked me if I could write an exam for his friend," recalls Pushpa, > who goes by one name. > > She said yes, but when the day came, her excitement gave way to > anxiety. She had never written an exam for someone else and didn't > know what to expect. > > Many Indian students with physical or learning disabilities use a > scribe to write exams on their behalf. They dictate answers to the > scribe, who notes them down. As per government guidelines, scribes are > not allowed to write for any subject they themselves have studied at > university level. They can get a defined fee for exams conducted by > the government, but most of the time, the work is voluntary. > > "It was three hours of tension. The candidate was dictating the > answers very slowly and was asking me to read out the questions again > and again," says Pushpa, who chose to help out for free. > > ADVERTISEMENT > > But she did enough to help 19-year-old Hema (who uses one name) pass > her school final exams. > > Soon, an NGO working with blind people approached Pushpa for help and > then other students. In the past 16 years, Pushpa has written over > 1,000 exams, free of charge. > > "Exam halls are like a second home for me," she tells the BBC. > > In addition to school and university exams, Pushpa has also helped > candidates appearing in entrance exams and selection tests for > government jobs. > > Pushpa poses with two exam candidates who are visually impaired > IMAGE SOURCE,PUSHPA > Image caption, > Pushpa (centre) with two visually impaired examination candidates > "Now it is routine work for me. I don't feel any stress," she says, > adding that the experience has helped her learn about many subjects > she had no knowledge in - from history to statistics. > > She has helped blind students, those with cerebral palsy, Down's > syndrome, autism, dyslexia and students incapacitated by accidents. > > But it can be challenging sometimes. When working with students with > cerebral palsy, which often impairs speech, Pushpa says she has to > "concentrate hard and look at their [the students'] lip movements to > try to understand words". > > But she takes it in stride. She has helped Karthik (he goes by one > name), who uses a wheelchair, write 47 exams. > > It was a crises that forged their long association. During a school > exam, Kartik's scribe left abruptly and Pushpa stepped in to help. The > 25-year-old says he greatly appreciates her continual support since > then. > > "I'm lucky to get a scribe like Pushpa. Scribes are really like gods > for us," he says. > > Working together for years has given them a great understanding of > each other - Karthik has now graduated and is preparing for government > clerical recruitment exams. > > "I have written multiple exams for many students and each one has a > unique story," Pushpa says. > > Pushpa with Karthik > IMAGE SOURCE,PUSHPA > Image caption, > Karthik says scribes like Pushpa are like gods to him > In the third week of March, Pushpa wrote a university degree exam > paper for 19-year-old Bhoomika Valmiki. > > Ms Valmiki, who is blind, uses tools that convert text to audio to > study, but such apps cannot be used during exams. > > "I can only move forward in my life if Pushpa writes for me," Ms Valmiki > says. > > "Pushpa was very patient and waited till I finished my answers. She > never distracted me and repeated my answers before writing them down," > she adds. > > Most people who seek Pushpa's help have struggled to get into > university, yet she says her empathy won't undermine her integrity. > > "My job is to write what they say," she says. "I have no choice when > they ask me to tick a wrong answer or dictate a sentence which is > grammatically incorrect. I can't intervene." > > When students who speak other languages struggle to understand English > words she translates the word for them. "That is the only help I > give," Pushpa says. > > Pushpa with a blind candidate > IMAGE SOURCE,PUSHPA > Image caption, > Writing different exams has also helped to improve Pushpa's knowledge > Pushpa comes from a poor family. After her father was injured in an > accident, her mother worked hard to feed her and her brother. > > "At one point, me and my brother had to drop out of school because we > couldn't pay fees," she recalls. > > A stranger stepped in to help and Pushpa says she volunteers as a > scribe to give back this goodness to society. > > She has taken up several small jobs over the years to make a living, > but the past few years have been particularly hard. > > In 2018, her father died and in 2020, her brother passed away. A year > later, Pushpa, who was then unemployed, got some more bad news. > > "In May 2021, my mother passed away. A few months later, in August, I > wrote 32 exams. Some days I would write two exams." > > She says she found scribing therapeutic and helpful in overcoming her > grief. > > Pushpa receiving national award from the then President of India Ram Nath > Kovind > IMAGE SOURCE,PUSHPA > Image caption, > Pushpa's work has been nationally recognised > Her tireless work has not gone unnoticed. On 8 March 2018, she was > honoured by the then Indian president, Ram Nath Kovind, for her > efforts. She also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with other > award winners. > > Pushpa now works in a tech start-up and gives motivational talks at > corporate events. > > But she still writes exams for those who cannot, and since she can > speak and write in five Indian languages - Tamil, Kannada, English, > Telugu and Hindi - there's plenty of demand for her services. > > "I give my time and energy. If I write an exam for someone, it changes > their life," she says. > https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65692628?xtor=AL-72-%5Bpartner%5D-%5Bbbc.news.twitter%5D-%5Bheadline%5D-%5Bnews%5D-%5Bbizdev%5D-%5Bisapi%5D&at_link_origin=BBCWorld&at_link_type=web_link&at_medium=social&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_campaign_type=owned&at_campaign=Social_Flow&at_link_id=78A05A98-FD02-11ED-B2D4-EFE2D772BE90&at_format=link&fbclid=IwAR3Pa5OqIr60ERhHJRcCtt6NF3foGrgK2D0tYPBJ73c4DqaJSKOyixww44I > -- > सादर/ Regards > > अविनाश शाही/ Avinash Shahi > सहायक/ Assistant > मानव संसाधन प्रबंध विभाग/ Human Resource Management Department > भारतीय रिजर्व बैंक/ Reserve Bank of India > लखनऊ क्षेत्रीय कार्यालय/Lucknow RO > विस्तार/ Extension: 2232 > > -- > Disclaimer: > 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the > > person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; > > 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails > sent through this mailing list.. > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "AccessIndia" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/a/accessindia.org.in/d/msgid/accessindia/CADeSQ2g7eQJkmjJO2xkNRFydLdK6-5SRmZXeRrLRdQ_cndk7bg%40mail.gmail.com. > > > -- > Disclaimer: > 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the > person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; > > 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails > sent through this mailing list.. > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "AccessIndia" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/a/accessindia.org.in/d/msgid/accessindia/001b01d99201%24fa139430%240e01a8c0%40SayanekarPC. > -- सादर/ Regards अविनाश शाही/ Avinash Shahi सहायक/ Assistant मानव संसाधन प्रबंध विभाग/ Human Resource Management Department भारतीय रिजर्व बैंक/ Reserve Bank of India लखनऊ क्षेत्रीय कार्यालय/Lucknow RO विस्तार/ Extension: 2232 -- Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list.. Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "AccessIndia" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/a/accessindia.org.in/d/msgid/accessindia/CADeSQ2jonx6U5%3DKEQF6-LkRiuC%2BJPRt%3DJEK18mevAh3NxrwsOA%40mail.gmail.com.
