This story is very inspiring and I liked it, that's why posting it in my blog. This is also special because this story is someone connected to me indirectly. This story about a man whom I know from last 8 years but never gets the chance to meet. He is my friend's grandfather, and this story is all about how to achieve your dreams, and if you have strong volition then no one in this world can stop you to achieve it. You can find the same story in today's Mumbai Mirror(21 Sep 09 Page5)
Gritty 80-yr-old is probably city’s oldest law student
Uddhav Alkari had to overcome several hurdles before he could secure admission to a law college; rules state 30-year age limit for admission
NILESH NIKADE
Men like Uddhav Alkari would scoff at the idea of introducing an age barrier in law classrooms, or any classroom for that matter. The 80-year-old had to work harder at meeting the admission criteria than cracking the entrance test to get admission for a Bachelor of Law degree course. He had settled in Thane after retiring as assistant secretary in the Madhya Pradesh State Secondary Education Board. The arts post-graduate had always been keen on learning the legal process and, hence, wanted to study law. He waited till his children were well-settled before beginning his quest. But, he faced hurdles from the start. He did not have his graduation mark sheets. “I had graduated from the University of Ujjain in 1967, but had no record of my marks. I asked the university to help me by tracing the records. It was difficult for them, but after a few days they were able to. However, the records revealed that I had only 43 per cent, which is two per cent short of eligibility for the law course.” But, where there is a will, there is a way. Alkari learnt that Mumbai University offers five per cent bonus marks to candidates who score well in the entrance exams. That was enough for Alkari who worked hard and scored 40 out of 60 marks in the exam. That got him admission at the Sushila Devi High School and Law College at Airoli. But, his story does not end here. On week days, he takes a bus to Thane Railway Station to catch the 6 am local to Airoli. He wakes up at 4 am so that he reaches at least 10 minutes before the first lecture. His classmates are in awe of his determination and respect his sincerity. Hemant Kamat, his 30-yearold classmate, said, “I am bowled over by Alkari’s fitness. He always comes on time, which ensures a seat on the front bench. He does not get involved in personal talk, but speaks a lot when it comes to the course.” Alkari seems to be making up for a lot of lost time. He wanted to study law immediately after retirement, but could not due to the delay in his pension. He says, “In the course of my work, I had fought for starting pension for employees. We had offered to start pension without any financial support from the State government. Then finance minister P Chidambaram’s office had applauded our efforts. However, the State government took six years to implement the proposal. I received pension three years after I retired in 1988.” Then, his family responsibilities barred him from going ahead. Once his two sons and a daughter were well-settled, he decided to fulfil his long-standing desire. THE AGE FACTOR The Bar Council of India (BCI) recently introduced a new set of rules that includes age limit for admission to a law course. Open category students seeking admission for BA (law) course should not be below 20 while the age limit for reserved category would be 22. For those going in for post-graduation course (LLB), it stipulated that students in the open category should not be over 30 while for the reserved category the age limit is 35. A citizen has filed a petition against this rule in the Bombay HC.
Uddhav Alkari scored 40 out of 60 to clear the entrance exam; finally got admission to Sushila Devi High School and Law College, Airoli
I salute you to SIR; you really set an example for us. Hope we all can get something from this inspiring story
