BALLARI: In a rare fete, a father and son duo have cracked SSLC examinations at the same time in Kampli taluk of Ballari district. Shanmugappa Gowdru, 41, and his son Bharath Gowdru, have passed the SSLC exams and it's a double celebration at their home. The father-son duo has now inspired many seniors in their village to take up studies and examinations.
Shanmugappa is a farmer and member of School Development Management Committee (SDMC) of Devalapura village where his son studies. While being in the school he used to dream of completing his education and pass the SSLC exams. Teachers in the school supported his dream and provided study materials. They helped him to appear for the exam and he passed it too. He secured 307 marks out of 625 while son Bharath got 500 marks.
"My son and daughter are my inspiration to take up examinations at this age. I was also inspired by the school children who used to study hard for their examinations. The teachers in the school helped me choose the right books for studying. I also got some help from my son while studying. After I went on reading for the examinations I realised the value of education and what I was missing. The school headmaster S P Somashekhara instructed me from time to time to prepare for my exams," he recalled.
Earlier, Shanmugappa had appeared for the SSLC exams along with his daughter. But he could only clear Hindi and Kannada papers. In the next supplementary exam he cleared an English paper in the same year. He passed the remaining three papers this year along with his son.