Bitten by learning bug, teacher clears 58 subjects in board exams

ALLAHABAD - His passion for learning seems unending. This headmaster of a government school has been appearing in class 10 and 12 board exams for the past over 20 years, clearing them every time with new subjects.

Ram Lakhan Yadav, 53, has appeared as a private candidate and successfully cleared class 10 and 12 board exams in 58 different subjects of various streams - arts, commerce and science.

He has been appearing in the Uttar Pradesh board exams since 1986 without any gap.

“Frankly speaking, I have been appearing in the exams for my personal satisfaction,” Yadav, who teaches at the Purva Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Bargaon village in Allahabad district, told IANS over telephone.

“I want to learn more and more,” said Yadav, popularly known as “guruji” (teacher) in the village.

This year, Yadav appeared for the class 10 exams in three subjects - agriculture science, social science and tailoring.

“I am quite confident of clearing all the three papers with first division,” said Yadav, who has set a target of clearing Arabic and computer science papers next year.

“I know it is going to be tough. Both the subjects are totally new to me. So, for learning these subjects I will take tuitions from a madrassa (seminary) teacher and a computer teacher from a private institute,” he added.

In various streams, there are a total of 33 subjects in class 10 and 58 subjects in class 12 in Uttar Pradesh board exams.

“Of the 33 subjects in class 10, I have cleared 22 by appearing nine times in the class 10 board exams,” said Yadav.

“Of the 58 subjects in class 12, I have cleared 36 subjects by appearing in board exams 14 times,” he added.

A post-graduate in sociology, Yadav was a student when he appeared for the first time in class 10 exams in 1970. He completed class 12 in 1973.

Some of the subjects cleared by Yadav include physics, chemistry, maths, English, biology, history, home science, Urdu, Marathi, Bengali, painting, music and psychology.

Yadav is thankful to his family members for encouraging him to clear so many subjects in board exams.

“I will always remain thankful to all of them, particularly my three daughters who always ensure that I get enough time to study,” said Yadav.

The head master is a popular figure in the village. “He doesn’t charge a single penny and teaches students as long as they wish,” said Kamal Nayan Madhukar, a resident of Bargaon village.

Ratan Kumar, another village resident, said: “Yadavji has actually become an inspiration for students of this village. They too want to clear board exams in more and more subjects.”