Pledging Pensions For A Dream: Elderly Parents Pledge Pension Cards For Son's Medical Education

With education becoming increasingly expensive, how far can parents go to fund their children’s education? An elderly couple in Dhusari village in Odisha has gone to extraordinary lengths to fund their son’s dream of medical education. The 70-year-old Kepanga Sunamajhi and his wife, Nagatalu, found themselves short of funds to secure their son’s admission to medical college; they not only sold a portion of their land and borrowed money, but also pledged their old-age pension cards to raise Rs 24,000. They are marginal farmers and receive a pension under the Madhu Babu Pension scheme of the government.

As reported by The New Indian Express, their son has secured a seat in Maharaja Jajati Keshari Government Medical College in Jajpur. For the family, this was a proud moment, and they didn’t intend to lose the admission despite their constant financial hardships. That’s the reason they decided to even pledge their pension card to get the funds and secure their son’s admission.  

Securing a medical seat is a result of determination and perseverance of their son, amid the family’s struggles. He completed his schooling up to Class X from a government school, and the next two years up to XII from a government-aided school. After completing his school education, he came back to his parents to help them in farming and simultaneously prepared for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), a national-level exam for securing admission in undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses. He didn’t take any coaching and relied on self-study and internet sources for his learning. He cracked the NEET exam in his third attempt.

His parents want to leave no stone unturned in making further study possible for him, and pledging their pension cards is one of the unprecedented acts of parental sacrifice. Reportedly, they both receive an old-age pension of Rs 1,000 per month under Odisha's Madhu Babu Pension Yojana. The scheme offers a monthly pension to the economically weaker senior citizens, widows, and persons with disabilities. The welfare pension scheme is aimed at providing financial support to people living below the poverty line or under severe financial hardship. The scheme offers a monthly pension of Rs 1,000 to people in the 60 to 79 age group and other eligible individuals, and Rs 3,500 to the elderly above 80 or those with 80 per cent or more disability.  

To secure the admission money, they have pledged one card to a village moneylender for Rs 12,000 and the other card to a member of a self-help group (SHG) in Dhusari for another Rs 12,000. They secured the loan at no interest, and the lenders will collect the loan from the monthly pension amount until the full debt is repaid. The SHG member noted that the group provided the loan after considering the parents’ needs.

While the funds are arranged for their son to pursue his dreams, the parents are left without a regular pension to meet their daily needs. The coming years will bring more financial challenges to them, considering ongoing educational expenses, like food, books, travel, accommodation, and other essentials. While the mother feels both proud and anxious about this son’s achievement, both parents are ready to take the plunge, hoping for a bright future for their son.