Man teaching at a village school voluntarily for last 21 years sans pay
Cooch Behar: Nearly two decades ago Mrityunjay Lahiri walked into the Tufanganj Mahiskuchi Lower Primary School in Cooch Behar district but little did he know that the school would bestow him with a new identity – ‘Milan Master.’
From that day onwards, Mritunjay Lahiri started taking classes in the school, that too without any salary. On Tuesday, his students felicitated their favourite ‘Milan Sir’ who has set a unique example in the district.
In 2002, Lahiri visited the Mahishkuchi Lower Primary School along with his nephew for admission. There were around 550 students in the school with five classrooms and only four teachers.
With the dearth of staff, pressure on the teachers was very high. Taraprasad Bhattachary, the then Headmaster, verbally requested Lahiri for help. Lahiri, at that time did not have a steady job. He was taking tuitions for a living.
Since teaching was his passion, he did not hesitate to respond positively to the headmaster’s call. Every morning at around 9 o’ clock Lahiri, a resident of Shaldanga, Tufanganj Block 2, gets ready for school. He first opens the classrooms after reaching the school.
He has been taking regular classes in Mathematics, English and Bengali. Till date, he does not get any salary for the job he has dedicated himself to and still supports himself through meagre earnings from private tuitions and feels that the respect and honor he has received for the last 21 years is compensation enough. At present, the school has 150 students and 5 teachers. On one occasion, the school’s managing committee sent his name as a backup teacher but nothing transpired. However, Mrityunjay Lahiri has no regrets.
Subrata Saha, the present headmaster of the school, stated: “Mritunjay Babu’s financial condition is not good. We requested him several times to take an honorarium that we would manage but he always shunned our proposal.”
Rajesh Sarkar, former student, said: “He taught me when I was a kid. He continues to give selfless service. The government should do something for him.”
