Gauri lives with her 80-year-old grandfather in Awankhed village of Dindori. While her mother was still pregnant, Gauri’s father left them on their own and has never returned since then. A few years after she was born, her mother also married another man and went to live with him. Little Gauri was left in the care of her grandparents. It was her grandfather who worked as a blacksmith and invested whatever money he earned in her education. However, old-age and sickness has now made him weak and he is not able to work anymore. Whatever money he gets from old-age pension; he uses it in running the household.

Today, Gauri has only one dream; she wants to free her grandfather from all the financial responsibilities. She is currently doing her graduation in commerce and is also giving tuitions to school students in her spare time. From the tuitions, she manages a small yet very important amount of Rs 2,000 per month which helps her in paying her college fee and managing other educational expenses. “I just want to be able to stand on my own feet and start earning as soon as possible.

My grandfather has done a lot for me and I want to pay him back for everything,” she says. She will use the scholarship amount to pay for extra classes and investing further in her education.