For someone who is from one of the most oppressed and economically deprived communities in the country, Bal Maya Biswakarma, 29, has come a long way. It wasn't just fate, but a conscious effort to rise above the bonds of society in her community in Chitwan's Fulbari VDC.

Bal Maya's world changed when she got a scholarship from Save the Children US 10 years ago to continue her studies in Grade Eight at Laxmi Secondary School. She hasn't looked back since. Bal Maya passed her SLC exams with good grades and joined the Sapta Gandaki Multiple Campus in Bharatpur to graduate with a Bachelors in Education. Then, she came to Kathmandu and did her masters in mathematics with support from a Japanese patron.

Bal Maya recently got married and now wants to do a PhD in social development. "Education helps you fight for your right and that is why it needs to be given the first priority," says Bal Maya, whose own life is a shining example of this.

The story of this remarkable woman's life would perhaps not be noteworthy were it not for the odds that Nepali society stacks against her dalit community and her gender. Bal Maya underplays her struggle, the resolve and self-assurance she needed to get this far and now wants to give other underprivileged Nepalis like her the same opportunities she got. She is the education coordinator at the National Depressed Social Welfare Organisation for the Underprivileged and is education coordinator for the same fund that started her on her journey to enlightenment. The National Children's Education Program today has 3,686 beneficiaries in 15 districts.

When Bal Maya went to Dang recently to meet her husband's family she was overwhelmed by the reception. She told us: "I have won the confidence of my community and society. Perhaps they will look at us differently
now."

Alok Tumbahangphey