Kajal Prajapati first cleared the recruitment process for talati-cum-mantri and later for the post of deputy mamlatdar
“Given the physical disability of losing an eye, I turned my attention to the revenue department exams,” she says. “I am hopeful that she too will get the job she wants in the police department,” she says. She had initially wanted to become a police sub-inspector, but eventually accepted that her visual impairment would stand in the way. Then there is Rinku Patel, whom Kajal met at the library. They studied together for five years. Having secured her own place in govt service, Kajal is now rooting for her friend.
So I studied at the district panchayat library in Mehsana and put in eight to 10 hours every day,” she says.
That means a lot to me,” she says. The doctors who treated her also gave the family concessions for her surgeries, she says. I will never forget that support,” she says.
Preparing for the exams meant doing without many of the advantages available to other aspirants. The family had already struggled with the costs of her treatment. “We did not have the money for coaching, and I could not afford to study at a private library. She credits her family, friends and doctors with getting her this far. Her elder brother Rahul, who works at a vehicle fitness centre, has been one of her biggest supporters. “He tells everyone, ‘My sister is the strongest. “So many people helped me reach this point — my family, my friends and even doctors. With two recruitment exams cleared, she now gets to choose the job with which she will proudly begin a new life.