A Degree of Hope

Sun rays sliced into the wafting mist; tea-stained hands had already found their rhythm at work.

- BINITA JAISWAL @ Chennai

A few eyes wandered to the group of unfamiliar faces that had stepped into hills combed with lush green estates, nestled in the deep hues of Nilgiris blue.

The students visiting from Madras Christian College in Chennai for a field trip were greeted by quizzical looks from the workers, all except one young woman in the hamlet. Her inquisitive eyes, eager to sit down with the team, were met with a new flicker of possibility that stretched beyond the boundaries of her small village. The students of the chemistry course and their inspiring tales of academia in a distant world were etched into Seetha's mind.

For the 120 Kurumba families living in Katachanakolli village, access to higher education is a distant dream as they struggle to arrange a square meal every day. Most residents worked in the tea plantations, and many children dropped out after primary or secondary school due to poverty and lack of infrastructure. But Seetha, a native of the Adivasi hamlet in the village, refused to tuck her dreams to sleep.