“A heroic parent“: Anand Mahindra to help MP boy whose father cycled 106km to get him to exam centre

New Delhi: Anand Mahindra, the chairman of Mahindra Group, came forward to help the boy from Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district whose father travelled on a bicycle around 85 kilometres to ensure he appear for his Class 10 boards supplementary exam.

Taking to Twitter Anand Mahindra wrote, “A heroic parent. One who dreams big for his children. These are the aspirations that fuel a nation’s progress. At @MahindraRise we call it a Rise story. Our Foundation would be privileged to support Aseesh’s further Education. Could the journalist please connect us?”

The man, who hails from Manawar Tehsil in Dhar district said he has no other choice as public transport was unavailable.

“I want my son to become something after completing his studies. There is no public transport in lockdown. I don’t have even a motorcycle so I have to cover the journey on a bicycle. I saved money for his form for the exam by doing ‘majdoori’ (daily wage work). I am a farmer but mostly do daily wage work,” Shobhram told ANI.

Shobhram’s son Ashish has to appear for his maths exam on Tuesday so they left their home on Monday afternoon. They spent the night in Mandav and reached the examination centre in Dhar a few minutes before the time.

Due to lack of accommodation in Dhar, they also kept three days’ food with them.

Ashish on Wednesday took the social science exam.

“I came on the bicycle as the buses were not operating. I took exams of maths and social science. I want to big officer. I also pedal the cycle for some distance,” he said.

Dhar District Magistrate Alok Singh said that the man could get some help if he had approached any official.

“The administration has made district headquarters as the centre of exams. If the person had approached tehsildar or any other official then he could have got some help. Many vehicles are also plying,” he said.