Ranchi: Every morning, Gulshan Lohar walks into his classroom, grips a piece of chalk with his toes and, balancing on one leg, fills the blackboard with equations. Then the 39-year-old mathematics teacher turns to his students and begins the lesson.Born without both arms in Baranga village of West Singhbhum’s Manoharpur block, Gulshan has refused to let disability write his limits. For 12 years, the political science graduate and BEd holder has taught mathematics at Baranga Utkramit Uchcha Vidyalaya, inspiring hundreds of children even as he waits for a permanent job.“I always dreamt of becoming a teacher. Initially, writing on the blackboard while standing on one leg and teaching was difficult, but I overcame it with practice,” he told TOI.Gulshan said he met Shibu Soren in Jamshedpur in 2004 and the former CM helped him continue his studies.After completing his BEd in 2014, Gulshan approached the then West Singhbhum deputy commissioner for work. The officer helped him secure a contractual post at a SAIL-run school. But the difficult commute forced him to move to the school in his village, where he has since worked on a “no work, no pay” basis.He is paid Rs 139 per class. Holidays, including summer and winter vacations, mean no income. “It is difficult to support my family on such meagre earnings,” he said.Yet, when the final school bell rings, Gulshan’s day is far from over. Back home, the teacher becomes a student, preparing for competitive examinations in the hope of landing a govt teaching job and a stable livelihood.“My life has been full of struggles — getting an education, finding work and sustaining myself. But I have never given up,” he said. “Disability should not decide what a person can achieve.”By day, Gulshan solves equations for his students. By night, he works on the toughest one of his own: turning grit into security.
