Chanchal S Chauhan

An orange seller once stood at a bus stand in Mangaluru and couldn’t answer a tourist’s question. Just a simple moment. But it stayed with him. Harekala Hajabba had no formal education. He sold oranges for a living and lived in Newpadapu, a village where children had no school to go to. Every day, he saw the same reality repeating itself. So in 2000, with his savings from selling oranges and without waiting for permission or privilege, he started a school on his own land in his village. It wasn’t easy. He continued selling oranges while slowly building what he could, step by step, for years. What began as a small effort grew over time into a proper school, with more children joining, and support slowly coming in from different quarters. And the man behind it? He eventually received the Padma Shri for changing lives through education. A man who once had no schooling of his own made sure an entire village’s children never face the same silence he once did. Read More : thebetterindia.com/changemak… #changemaker #PadmaShri #inspiringIndia [Changemaker, Rural Education, Padma Shri, Inspiration, India Stories]