KOCHI: From being written off as an infant with short life expectancy to conquering the curve balls thrown at her, 24-year-old Lakshmi Sivaprasad has come a long way. Her life, filled with pain and hardships, is an example for those who find even life’s tiniest challenges unsurmountable hills and falter. The resident of Nettoor who was diagnosed with a locomotor disability that rendered her immobile and prone to illnesses, has topped her MA Malayalam batch of Maharaja’s College — with a cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 4.84 out of 5. She now wants to do her BEd.
“I was born via C-section and had severe deformation of the head and limbs. The doctors didn’t give me much chance of survival and declared that even if I did, I would have to live with my deformities.
However, my parents, Sivaprasad and Rejani, refused to bow down to fate and sought out various treatments for me. Things began to look up when as a six-month-old I started making sounds on seeing familiar objects. The shape of my head began changing. I gained mobility in my fingers,” Lakshmi tells TNIE. However, unable to bend the knees, her legs remained immobile.
“Many health issues started dogging me. I began treatment at Medical Trust Hospital,” she adds. When she turned six, Lakshmi saw her cousins being admitted to school and expressed a desire to do the same. “My parents hesitated. But they came around and my father approached the teacher of a lower primary school nearby,” recounts Lakshmi.
That was the start of her educational journey, which saw her parents carry their daughter to and from school. “I was in Class V when a well-known surgeon on hearing about me expressed his interest in examining my legs. Dr A A John also instructed me to do some exercises. After a week or so, he contacted us again and advised immediate surgery.”
The procedure was successful. “I was able to walk with help.”She went on to complete her upper primary education at the same school. “For high school, I joined Mangalayil GVHSS, in Maradu — despite my parents’ objections over the distance from home.” Lakshmi went on to score 90% in her SSLC and joined the Sacred Heart HSS in Thevara for Plus One. “After completing Plus Two with really good marks, I told my parents that I wanted to study further.
They were sceptical since going to college would have been very tough on me,” says Lakshmi. But the parents relented once again and got her admitted to BA Malayalam at Maharaja’s College. However, college life was not smooth sailing. “My health deteriorated, which prevented me from attending classes in person. I was accorded special permission to study from home.”
Lakshmi recounts how her friends, teachers helped her out by enabling her to attend classes via voice calls by phone and sharing notes. Her perseverance paid off and she cleared her BA with the highest marks in the history of the college’s Malayalam department. It was no different for her postgraduate studies.
“For my MA, the college officials told me that I would have to seek special permission from the department of collegiate education.” It was at this juncture that Minister for Higher Education R Bindu happened to come across a story about Lakshmi and met her. The minister issued a special order exempting her from attending physical classes. And, again, Lakshmi did not disappoint.