An illiterate farm labourer’s son becomes a professor

“Without struggle, success has no value.”

– Aaron Lauritsen

Ganga Sahay was a young boy whose parents are illiterate poor farm labours in a remote village of Rajasthan. They were so poor that they could barely afford two meals a day. There were no crops of wheat in that village, so ‘chapatis’ of wheat were prepared when guests arrived. Fruits and vegetables were a delicacy, during the visit of relatives. Celebrations and festivals gave them an opportunity to taste sweets. Ganga went to study in a government school in Hindi medium. He used to graze cattle during his spare time.

Unlike affluent families where the parents persuade their kids to eat food, Ganga had to grab food when available. He remembers having got his first trousers when he was in Class X, that too as it was compulsory. Time moved on, and Ganga completed his graduation from the local government college. His brother asked him to apply for admission to a PG course at Delhi University and JNU (Jawahar Lal Nehru University). It was in 2001 that Ganga went to Delhi for the first time to appear in the entrance examination. When he received no intimation by post about the result, he went to Delhi to find out for himself. When he reached Delhi University, the counter had closed, so he decided to go and check the result in JNU.

He boarded bus no. 621 from Mori Gate for going to JNU. To his surprise, the conductor asked him "which gate of JNU do you want to go"? Ganga was bewildered how a University can have more than one bus stops. He merely told the conductor that he is going to check his result, so he was dropped at the gate of the Administrative building of JNU. This was to be the turning point of his life when he found his name at the very top of the list of successful candidates. Destiny dealt another blow when he got the shocking news about his father’s untimely demise. However, his family members did not ask him to start earning; instead, they persuaded him to continue his education.

In an interview, Ganga said, “the fees in JNU is negligible, and the quality of education is world class. In so many ways, it is an ideal university.” Ganga was an introvert and found himself among students from reputed schools, colleges and belonging to well to do families. He consistently worked on himself to learn and improve, so that he could come up to the level of the class. He spent a lot of time in the library reading books and periodicals.

"If your dreams are big and you are prepared to put in your 100% and believe in yourself, no one can stop you from realising your dreams"

- Ganga Sahay

Sincere and hard work never goes waste, and Ganga soon completed MPhil. and PhD. He says with pride, “I was the first student of my batch to get a JRF scholarship.” After that, he got an opportunity to teach Hindi in Delhi University on a contractual basis. Soon, afterwards he was selected for the permanent post of Assistant Professor at Pondicherry University. He worked there for a year, after which the position of Assistant professor in JNU was advertised. Ganga was among the 35 candidates who applied and was selected. It was a dream come true for him to teach in his alma mater. It has been ten years now, and his colleagues describe him as the youngest Associate Professor in JNU.

Alongside his academic credentials, Dr Ganga Sahay Meena has also developed himself as an expert on Dalit matters and current affairs. He is a regular columnist for leading newspapers like Dainik Bhaskar, Rashtriya Sahara, Jansatta, Rajasthan Patrika, Amar Ujala, etc. He is invited to participate in debates on TV channels like Aaj Tak, India TV, Zee news, etc.

He has been entrusted with the responsibility of developing a full fledged online course in Hindi by UGC, MHRD. The ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations) has selected him to go to Ankara University in Turkey as a visiting Professor. Dr Ganga Sagar has delivered an inspiring talk on Josh Talks describing his struggles along his journey from a remote village to the National capital. His life is sure to inspire many youth hailing from poor families, studying in regional languages in government schools. His message to the youth is “it does not matter whether you are from a poor background, studied in a regional medium in government schools, if your dreams are big and you are prepared to put in your 100% and believe in yourself, no one can stop you from realising your dreams.”