AMALAPURAM: Behind his achievement of securing a government teacher post are the words of his social studies teacher, Koteswara Rao. He always remembered his teacher’s advice: “Discipline can change one’s lifestyle, and social studies will help decide life goals.” These words became deeply rooted in his mind. From childhood, Bommali Rambabu fought against drastic poverty, and the encouragement from his teacher gave him strength. With motivation from his teacher and support from many donors, he finally achieved his goal of becoming a School Assistant (SA) in social studies.
Bommali Rambabu, a resident of Yedida village in Mandapeta mandal, Ambedkar Konaseema district, originally hails from Cherlam in Bobbili, Vizianagaram district. His parents, Sangayya and Sujanamma, migrated to Mandapeta about 50 years ago in search of work and survived through agricultural labour. Around 40 years ago, the then Chief Minister NT Rama Rao allotted them a tiled house under a housing scheme for the homeless. The couple had three sons and three daughters. Due to poverty, they were unable to provide proper education to their children.
Their elder son, Satyanarayana, was adopted by relatives and now works at LIC in Visakhapatnam. Their daughter Sundaramma settled in Saluru after marriage. The younger sons, Ramesh and Rambabu, along with daughters Laxmi and Vijaya Kumari, worked in agriculture to support the family. Ramesh and Rambabu studied up to the 10th class at Mandapeta ZPP High School. During his 8th and 9th standards, Rambabu was inspired by the words of social studies teacher Koteswara Rao, which left a lasting impact on him.
After completing the 10th class, the brothers joined the CEC group at Muramanda Government Junior College in Kadiyam mandal. They completed their BA at Mandapeta Degree College, and later Rambabu pursued MA in Srikakulam district. Both brothers then appeared for the B.Ed. entrance test. Rambabu secured a seat at National College, Machilipatnam, but could not afford to study. Bobby Master encouraged him not to give up and provided financial support. Later, with the help of Prasad Master from Kothapet Elementary School and Kantipudi Satyanarayana Master from Dulla village, he raised more funds. Contributions also came from Artamoor SVSR Charitable Trust, Alamuru Samatha Charitable Society, and Ravulapalem Raghavendra Eye Hospital Trust. With their support, he completed his B.Ed in 2004-05.
Afterwards, the brothers worked as teachers in a private school. Still, Rambabu had only one target: to crack DSC. However, several attempts ended in heartbreak. In 2012, while preparing for DSC, his mother fell ill with a heart problem and passed away. In 2018, as he was preparing again, his father was injured in an accident. Later, his father died during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The following year, his brother Ramesh also died. A week later, his elder sister Lakshmi succumbed to COVID-19. These continuous family tragedies pushed Rambabu into deep mental stress, and many people considered him ‘unfortunate.’
At this point, his sister Rajana Sundaramma came from Saluru to take care of him. After six months, Rambabu began working at Gupta’s Rice Store in Chemudulanka, Alamuru mandal, for livelihood.
The shop owner treated him like a family member, impressed by his discipline and obedient nature. Around the same time, the government released a DSC notification. Encouraged by the shop owner, Rambabu resumed preparation and finally achieved his lifelong goal of becoming a government teacher. He will attend induction classes from October 3 to 10.
Speaking to TNIE, Rambabu said he would never have been able to approach donors without recalling the motivational words of his teacher, Koteswara Rao. He credited his success to timely support from donors and said his teacher’s advice had guided him towards fulfilling his dream.