11 hours ago
‘A boy once nervous about math marks makes a mark in space'
Lucknow: A boy who was once nervous about his mathematics marks is now making a mark in space. That's an incredible journey of pursuit and perseverance, recalled Nageshwar Prasad Shukla, who taught mathematics to Shubhanshu from Class 9 till 12 at City Montessori School, Aliganj campus in Lucknow.
"In 2002, when Shubhanshu was in Class 12, he scored low marks in the first comparative examination and did not inform his parents about it. He was totally interested in sports in those days. One evening, he returned home after playing football and saw my bike parked. He entered his house with a nervous face assuming that I was there to complain about him," recalled Nageshwar.
"I was talking to his parents about his scores.
He had scored low marks in some subjects, but had the lowest marks in maths. I knew he was intelligent but, like most boys, believed in working hard only at the last moment. I motivated him and promised to give him extra time," said Nageshwar.
Shubhanshu promised to put in 100% efforts and came out with flying colours in his board examinations. "This is how he is; he works hard, delivers, and makes us proud," said Nageshwar who was Shubhanshu's class teacher and teacher-guardian and made frequent home visits to keep his parents updated about their son's academic performance.
"For others, his space journey is a celebration, but for me, it's both a celebration and nervousness — my student should return safely. I recall that home visit when he stood nervous on seeing me at his residence, and today I stood nervous and proud as he flew to space," he added.
CMS Aliganj vice-principal Lipika Bose said, "Shubhanshu was bright and focused since school days. A good footballer and with a strong personality, he always showed the spark to do something really big."
Born in Lucknow in 1985, Shubhanshu did his entire schooling from CMS Aliganj. He graduated from the National Defence Academy and was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in 2006. With over 2,000 hours of flight experience on elite combat aircraft, he was selected in 2019 for India's Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme and later chosen as the pilot for Axiom-4.
