I belong to a beautiful family of seven. To be more precise, I am the eldest child and have four younger siblings, two younger sisters and two brothers. My father was a retired government employee. I studied computer science from a Tier 3 college but was weak in coding. Overall, I was an average student and had performed decently in academics. My entire world revolved around college, home and studies. In college also, I never had a lot of friends. On the home front, my father used to take care of everyone; from paying fees to bringing daily groceries, he looked after everything independently. I was so dependent on him that even if I had to buy a pen, I would ask him, and he would get it for me.

I clearly remember that day. I had an external viva for my B.tech final year. I got a call from one of my relatives, and my world shattered. I broke down after what they said on the call. My father had lost a month-long battle to a fatal accident. My world had become upside down. My father’s belongings were not given to us for four days because it was an accident. I was out of cash and did not even know how to withdraw money from an ATM or bank account. I missed my father so much, and if he were there, he would take care of everything. Now I had to face the world without his love and his protectiveness. A family of seven had just one breadwinner. Now the only source of income was his pension. We were already in a financial crisis because we had spent lakhs on Papa’s treatment. The void he left only worsened with time.

Immediately, I had to take up a job to support the family. In December 2020, I started putting in efforts and got to know about CCBP, but I was not sure if I will be able to make it. The pandemic times made things worse for me, and on top of that, the course cost ₹ 20,000. So, I borrowed money, and one of my uncles in the US bought me a laptop to learn. Along with my studies, I had to go to hospitals, insurance firms and government offices every day for four months. I would know during the evenings and nights. I made sure to utilise every minute of learning.

My mentors built my confidence and reinforced in me that I could do it. The way they taught made me believe that I could earn a job. I remained consistent in my efforts and learning, attended the placement. It was the first-ever interview I had faced. I answered every question in the discussion. I believe that it was my father’s blessings, along with my hard work, that I got placed as an Associate Engineer. When I shared the news at home with my mother and siblings, my mother broke down in tears. All we wished that day was that if only our father were there with us to share this happiness, it would be doubled. I am happy that I can fulfil the responsibility of being the eldest child and support my family now. I have an opportunity to grow and would do my best to achieve greater heights. I see youngsters giving up on life, and I want them to face every situation with courage and trust themselves. One day, you will get there with hard work.

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