Latest news with #Dharaksha
NDTV
22-05-2025
- General
- NDTV
Migrant Girl's Journey Now Part Of Kerala's School Curriculum. Here's Why
Kochi: A small tiled house in Muppathadam, near Eloor in Ernakulam, has been receiving many visitors in recent days. People are coming to meet and congratulate Dharaksha Parveen, a young woman originally from Bihar, whose life story has now found its way into the school curriculum. Twelve years ago, Dharaksha moved from Bihar to Kerala. Now, a memoir in the form of a letter to a friend—where she recalls her childhood in Bihar and how her life changed after moving to Kerala—has been included in the new textbook for sixth standard students in Kerala. The memoir she wrote in Malayalam, Thozhilinte Ruchi, Bhashayudeyum (which translates to The Taste of Labour and Language), recalls how her impoverished family, with no resources or proper educational infrastructure in their native village in Darbhanga, rebuilt their lives after arriving in Kerala. It also highlights how the Kerala government's special education programme Roshni, designed for the children of migrant labourers, helped her achieve her dream. "In Bihar, I studied up to the 3rd standard. The school had no benches, desks, or even enough teachers. When we came to Kerala, I joined the 4th standard here. We had everything we needed—good furniture, books, and teachers. My siblings also joined school here," an excited Dharaksha told PTI. Dharaksha soon began learning Malayalam and even tutored the children of migrant labourers in government schools under the Roshni programme. "The children face difficulties with the language when they join schools here, so I helped them using my knowledge of Hindi and my basic understanding of Bengali and Oriya," Dharaksha said. Her father, Muhammed Sameer, works at a footwear manufacturing company in Ernakulam, and from a young age, Dharaksha was eager to earn something on her own. She has a passion for fashion design and enrolled in an ITI course immediately after completing her 10th standard. "I wanted to study fashion design as I've always been passionate about creating clothes. Now I'm working in that field and also pursuing a degree in Hindi language through distance education from Indira Gandhi National Open University," she said. Her mother, Rajiya Khath, is a housewife. Her brothers--Mohammed Sameer, studies at MES College, Marampilly, and Mohammed Adil is a Plus Two student at GHSS Muppathadam. At a recent function in Kochi, where Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was also present, Dharaksha spoke about how the state's strong public education system in Kerala had helped her receive a good education. She also requested the CM to extend the Roshni scheme to all government schools across the state. "I was told that the chief minister has agreed to my suggestion to extend the scheme to all schools. I am yet to receive confirmation," Dharaksha said. Her biggest dream is to own a house in Kerala, and she is now working hard to make that dream a reality. "I love this state and consider my arrival here the greatest stroke of luck in my life. Everyone here has supported and encouraged me," Dharaksha said. It was a teacher from Palakkad who, after hearing Dharaksha's story, encouraged her to write down her experiences. Her account was later selected by the state government's textbook committee to be included in the curriculum for sixth-grade students. Talking to PTI, Director General of Education Shanavas S IAS said that Dharaksha's memoir was the best representation of the state education department's efforts to bring the children of guest workers into the mainstream. This has been achieved by offering training in Malayalam, while also using facilitators to help the children continue learning their languages through the Roshni project. "We had recommended Dharaksha's writing to the curriculum committee of the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), and they acknowledged that the girl's writing in Malayalam was of high quality and a genuine account of the benefits of the Roshni scheme. So, they decided to include it in the sixth standard curriculum from this academic year," Shanavas said. He added that, based on the girl's request, the government has taken steps to extend the Roshni project to all government schools as well.
The Hindu
21-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Migrant girl's journey now part of Kerala's school curriculum
A small tiled house in Muppathadam, near Eloor in Ernakulam, has been receiving many visitors in recent days. People are coming to meet and congratulate Dharaksha Parveen, a young woman originally from Bihar, whose life story has now found its way into the school curriculum. Twelve years ago, Dharaksha moved from Bihar to Kerala. Now, a memoir in the form of a letter to a friend—where she recalls her childhood in Bihar and how her life changed after moving to Kerala—has been included in the new textbook for Class VI in Kerala. The memoir she wrote in Malayalam, Thozhilinte Ruchi, Bhashayudeyum (which translates to The Taste of Labour and Language), recalls how her impoverished family, with no resources or proper educational infrastructure in their native village in Darbhanga, rebuilt their lives after arriving in Kerala. It also highlights how the Kerala government's special education programme Roshni, designed for the children of migrant labourers, helped her achieve her dream. 'In Bihar, I studied up to Class III. The school had no benches, desks, or even enough teachers. When we came to Kerala, I joined Class IV here. We had everything we needed—good furniture, books, and teachers. My siblings also joined school here,' an excited Dharaksha said. Dharaksha soon began learning Malayalam and even tutored the children of migrant labourers in government schools under the Roshni programme. 'The children face difficulties with the language when they join schools here, so I helped them using my knowledge of Hindi and my basic understanding of Bengali and Oriya,' Dharaksha said. Her father, Muhammed Sameer, works at a footwear manufacturing company in Ernakulam. From a young age, Dharaksha was eager to earn something on her own. She has a passion for fashion design and enrolled in an ITI course immediately after completing her 10th standard. 'I wanted to study fashion design as I've always been passionate about creating clothes. Now I'm working in that field and also pursuing a degree in Hindi language through distance education from Indira Gandhi National Open University,' she said. Her mother, Rajiya Khath, is a housewife. Her brothers Mohammed Sameer studies at MES College, Marampilly, and Mohammed Adil is a Plus Two student at GHSS, Muppathadam. At a recent function in Kochi, where Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was also present, Dharaksha spoke about how the State's strong public education system in Kerala had helped her receive a good education. She also requested the Chief Minister to extend the Roshni scheme to all government schools across the State. 'I was told that the Chief Minister has agreed to my suggestion to extend the scheme to all schools. I am yet to receive confirmation,' Dharaksha said. Her biggest dream is to own a house in Kerala, and she is now working hard to make that dream a reality. 'I love this State and consider my arrival here the greatest stroke of luck in my life. Everyone here has supported and encouraged me,' Dharaksha said. It was a teacher from Palakkad who, after hearing Dharaksha's story, encouraged her to write down her experiences. Her account was later selected by the State government's textbook committee to be included in the curriculum. Director General of Education Shanavas S, said Dharaksha's memoir was the best representation of the State Education department's efforts to bring the children of guest workers into the mainstream. This has been achieved by offering training in Malayalam, while also using facilitators to help the children continue learning their languages through the Roshni project. 'We had recommended Dharaksha's writing to the curriculum committee of the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) and they acknowledged that the girl's writing in Malayalam was of high quality and a genuine account of the benefits of the Roshni scheme. So, they decided to include it in Class VI curriculum from this academic year,' Mr. Shanavas said. He added that, based on the girl's request, the government has taken steps to extend the Roshni project to all government schools as well.
New Indian Express
08-05-2025
- General
- New Indian Express
Bihar woman's memoir becomes lesson in Kerala class VI textbook
KOCHI: Never had 22-year-old Dharaksha Parveen, a migrant woman from Bihar's Darbhanga district, dreamt that one day a brief memoir she wrote would be made into a lesson and that too in Kerala General Education Department's Class VI Malayalam textbook. But that has happened! In the 2025-26 academic year, Class VI students throughout the state will study her life's journey from Bihar as a 10-year-old to a Malayalam teacher in the school where she mastered the language. Speaking to TNIE, Dharaksha, who arrived in Kerala 12 years ago in 2013, says, 'My father came before us. For him, Kerala has been home for the past 25 years. We now live at Muppathadam Thandirikkal Colony in a rented house.' According to her, the events that led to her writing getting selected for the Malayalam textbook happened after a small piece of news appeared in a vernacular daily in 2023. 'Narayanan Mash from Palakkad happened to come across the news. It was a story about a function held at GHS Binanipuram, where I now teach craft and also Malayalam under the Roshini project,' she says. 'Narayanan Mash contacted Jayashree teacher associated with the Roshini project at my school. She sent him my location and address. He, along with his team, came to my house and held discussions with me for an entire day. It was during the discussions that he asked me to write something in Malayalam for a book,' says Dharaksha. She agreed and wrote a piece in a letter format addressed to her friend in Bihar. 'In the letter, I talked about my life in Kerala, achievements, important events and the people here. I sent the write-up to Narayanan Mash. It was then edited and finally selected as a lesson in the Class VI Malayalam textbook after thorough scrutiny,' she adds. According to her, the friend she addressed her letter to is a girl she studied with in Class VII in Darbhanga. 'She is now married. That would have been my fate too if I hadn't come to Kerala. When I arrived and joined Class V at GHS Binanipuram, it was difficult for me to study.
