[ Bengia Ajum ]
ZIRO, 27 Nov: Seventy-year-old Gaon Burah (GB) Mudang Pai, along with 16 of his classmates are now anxiously waiting for the results of the Basic English course exam for gaon buras and gaon buris, which will be declared on 6 December.
Their final examination was conducted last Saturday at the Govt TPD ME School here. GB Pai is the oldest student of the class.
The Basic English course for the GBs began on 17 July, 2022 onwards. Initially, 27 GBs registered for the course, but later, 10 of them discontinued. All of them are members of the Diibo Gaon Bura Buri Association (DGBBA).
The members of the DGBBA are residents of Dutta, Bamin-Michi and Mudang Tage villages.
The classes were conducted every Sunday from 2 to 4 pm in the afternoon. Apart from English, basic mathematics was taught to them. “All the students are now waiting to see their result. Everyone is excited and looking forward to it. The result will be declared on 6 December, on the occasion of the 6th foundation day celebration of the DGBBA,” informed Yachang Tacho, a young, educated GB who initiated the effort to impart basic education to his illiterate GB colleagues.
Out of the 17 students who appeared for the final examination, eight are males and nine are females.
“They have never seen the door of the school. During the initial phase, the teachers had to literally hold their hands to teach them how to write. Now they can write their own names in English and can even note down phone numbers,” said Tacho.
He praised the contribution of two teachers – Hano Usha and Dulley Yaring – who voluntarily taught the GBs. “We are grateful to these two teachers for their contribution. I would also like to thank Lower Subansiri Deputy Commissioner Bamin Nime, who provided study materials and extended moral support to our initiative,” he added.
Seeing the immense popularity of the initiative, Tacho has now decided to organise a second edition of the Basic English course. “The second edition will be starting soon. This time, apart from the GBs, the public too will be given the opportunity to learn,” announced Tacho.
