CHENNAI: Ever since her family was evicted from a slum on the Cooum River banks and the government shifted them to the resettlement site at Perumbakkam, N Keerthana had her work cut out for her.
She had just completed her Class 10 exams and their new residence is about 40 kms away from where the family was living. Her parents, who lost their jobs when they moved here, had to rebuild their lives, setting up a small grocery shop within the Slum Clearance Board resettlement premises.
Keerthana's job was mainly cooking -- she would make dinner on weekdays and all three meals on Sundays and other holidays.
Despite all this, she never lost focus on her studies and has now scored 492 out of 600 in her class 12 examinations.
"I had always been a good student so I was sure I would get a good score. I didn't take any tuition, I taught myself," said Keerthana who is a student of a private matriculation school in Thalambur.
Her family was resettled to Perumbakkam after being evicted from Thiruverkadu where her father Nagamuthu handled the accounts of a small company while her mother ran a tailoring shop. Together, they had made close to Rs 40,000 a month.
"When we moved here, they decided to open a shop because both of them were without jobs," she said.
The family now makes around Rs 18,000 a month. Her older brother works as a mechanic in a relative's workshop.
Their shop is right in front of the 9th block of the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) resettlement site where they live.
When her parents began setting up a business for the first time in their lives, Keerthana was tasked with taking care of cooking at home.
"They go to the shop at 5:30 am and come back at 10 pm. So after I return from school, I make dinner before they come. On Sundays, I cook all meals," Keerthana said.
With them, she gets up at 5:30 am to study and then gets dressed for school. In the evenings, she studies until 9 pm after which she takes care of any unwashed utensils left in the sink and prepares to make dinner.
"But they're never at home so I get the whole house to myself. I use this time to study," added Keerthana who wants to become a chartered accountant.