Pratapgarh’s Ranjana Singh maintains a positive mindset and does not let her illness come in the way of her dreams. She has not only overcome her own challenges but has also dedicated her life to helping other women gain independence in their lives. Through her organization, she has provided training to thousands of women.
Pratapgarh: Here is a remarkable story of Ranjana Singh, who stood strong in the face of challenges and bravely announced her victory. She is a resident of Sadar Bazar, Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh. She has a condition called myelitis, but she never lets her physical shortcomings deter her will. Through her dedication, she has managed to empower hundreds of women to become independent. Ranjana, at the age of 10, was diagnosed with myelitis; the illness severely affected her spinal cord. Despite these adversities, she pursued higher education, obtaining BA, MA, LLB, and MSW degrees.
Training to 2000 women
Ranjana Singh currently operates an organization under the name ‘Parivartan Path’ where she trains women in skills like tailoring, embroidery, fabric painting, and beautician skills etc. Since 2012, she has imparted this training to more than two thousand women. While suffering from agony herself, Ranjana remains undaunted and tirelessly crafts a better future for these women along with her own.
Incurable myelitis disease
Ranjana was an exceptionally bright student since her childhood. In the year 1992, when she was a class 5 student, she experienced unbearable pain in the lower part of her body; after which her lower body became numb, and she could not feel her legs. After seeking medical assistance, she received the devastating news that she was suffering from a condition called myelitis. The doctors told her that her illness was incurable.
Ranjana’s parents consulted doctors at prestigious institutions like Lucknow’s SGPGI, Varanasi’s BHU, and Mumbai hospitals. All the doctors could not help Ranjana with her condition. This was a ruthless and challenging period for Ranjana. A mountain of impossibilities was presented before her, and she somehow needed to cross it. Soon, Ranjana decided that her intellectual capabilities were her greatest asset. The doctors and her parents encouraged her to continue with her education despite her illness.
Story of perseverance
Ranjana’s condition made it difficult for her to continue her education like other students. She achieved 71% marks in high school and 64% in her final school examination. After securing 50% marks in her bachelors, she contemplated the career paths she could choose to pursue. Her brother used to carry her to the examination halls, and she did not want that to continue.
While she was doing her LLB, her professor’s harsh words stung at her heart. He taunted her and made her doubt about her career choices. But Ranjana stayed determined and took the LLB final exams and passed with 55% marks. She didn’t stop there and pursued an MSW degree.
Inspiration to pursue LLB
Ranjana was once admitted in the Allahabad hospital for her treatment. She loved to make intelligent conversations with the doctors and the nurses. The doctors were impressed to see her enthusiasm and advised her to consider pursuing LLB as a career option. She was told that in this profession, she could counsel people, which would not require her to frequently move from a seated position. Ranjana loved the idea of becoming a counsellor and firmed upon the idea of becoming one.
Providing training
Ranjana offers tuition classes to children and women along with the training. She believes that education can make a significant difference in one’s life, even though she couldn’t fully utilize her own degree. Because of her condition, she runs the training centres from her home. She also teaches young children at minimal fees.
The training programmes were started in the year 2012; she only had a group of 12 girls studying with her and now she has multiple batches of up to 30 girls in each one of them. Not many women could attend these classes during the pandemic, but Ranjana continued her efforts and did not lose hope.
Role of the family
The support of one’s family is always important in staying determined. Ranjana’s father, Jaisingh Bahadur Singh was a manager in FCI; he passed away during the pandemic. She has a mother, Nirmala Singh who is homemaker and brothers, Anand and Ashish. They provide unwavering support to Ranjana, accompanying her on various activities, including watching movies and visiting tourist spots and pilgrimage sites. Ranjana is fond of spending time with her family.
Dreams
Years ago, Ranjana expressed her wish to her father of opening a play school for the kids. Running a play school would have given more physical stress to Ranjana, and because of that her father did not approve of this. Establishing Parivartan Path was also not an easy task. This time, Ranjana took help from her friends and opened her training school.
Discouragement from people
Initially, Ranjana offered a six-month beautician course at her training school. She discussed about it with the girls in her neighbourhood, and they willingly enrolled in the training programmes. People discouraged her by saying that it would not be possible for her to run a 6-month course and that she must shorten it to a 2-month course. But Ranjana did not submit to it, and successfully completed the course in the set duration. Her determination and resilience were truly remarkable.
Keeping the hopes alive
Ranjana always remained optimistic regardless of what she did. She reflects on her journey and shares that there was a time when she felt like a burden on her family due to her health challenges. However, she has now transformed her life completely. She wishes to inspire people by passing on a message that these illnesses should not define a person’s potential. We are so much better than we think of ourselves. Her story tells that there are no limits to what one can achieve in their life.
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