Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
India

Kerala Coolie Step Closer To Civil Services Dream, Used Railway WiFi To Prep

IANS, 08 May, 2018 11:23 PM
    Being surrounded by books is a matter of routine for civil services aspirants, but Sreenath K, a coolie who cleared the written test of the Kerala Public Service Commission, the preparation is just about his phone and earphones as he goes about his job.
     
     
    Sreenath has been earning his livelihood carrying heavy luggage at Ernakulam Junction in Kerala for the past five years. Unlike his colleagues, he deftly balances the luggage on his shoulders and listens to his digital coursework at the same time - his teachers speaking to him through the earphones.
     
     
    A high school pass-out, he takes advantage of the free WiFi Internet service available at Ernakulam station to learn. "I have appeared thrice for the exam and this is the first time I used the WiFi at the station. What I do is put on my earphones and listen to the study material as I carry the luggage or solve questionnaires in my mind. This way I can study while I work. I revise all my work at night when I get free time," Sreenath said.
     
     
    The WiFi service, launched in 2016 as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Digital India initiative, provides free Internet to passengers under Railwire, the retail broadband distribution model of RailTel Corporation of India Limited.
     
     
    As of May 2018, at least 685 railway stations have been equipped with WiFi technology across the country, with the Indian Railways setting a target of providing this facility at all 8,500 stations by March 2019 at a cost of Rs. 700 crore.
     
     
    Sreenath hails from Munnar, a town in the Western Ghats mountain range. Ernakulam is the nearest major railway station from Munnar.
     
     
    He said the free WiFi service at the station opened up opportunities for him he never thought were available in the first place - reams of practice question papers, downloadable at a speed of 20-40 mbps, easy access to online examination forms, and above everything else, he saves money on books.
     
    If he qualifies for KPSC after interview, he is likely to be a village field assistant under the land revenue department. "I will keep studying. While I work as a coolie because I have the pressure of running my house, I will keep studying and appearing for exams. If I appear for enough exams, I am bound to get a good job," Sreenath said.
     
     
    He has also applied for exams advertised recently by the railways for 62,000 Group D posts of trackman, cabinman, leverman, pointsman, gangman and others.
     
     
    "What is my ideal job? A person of some authority to change things in my village maybe," he said.

    MORE India ARTICLES

    JNU Hikes Mess Fee By 100%, Student Body Leader Calls Circular ‘Obnoxious’

    JNU Hikes Mess Fee By 100%, Student Body Leader Calls Circular ‘Obnoxious’
    Refundable mess security has been increased to Rs. 4,500 from Rs. 2,700 and establishment charges per semester to Rs. 1,100 from Rs. 550, a circular said.

    JNU Hikes Mess Fee By 100%, Student Body Leader Calls Circular ‘Obnoxious’

    Won't Tolerate: Nikki Haley Says UN Spends Half Its Time Bashing Israel

    Won't Tolerate: Nikki Haley Says UN Spends Half Its Time Bashing Israel
    Referring to her Indian-American heritage and some of the bitter experiences she endured while growing in her home town in South Carolina, Nikki Haley said she has zero patience for bullying.

    Won't Tolerate: Nikki Haley Says UN Spends Half Its Time Bashing Israel

    Child Marriages Dip To 30% In India, 25 Mn Stopped Worldwide: UNICEF

    Child Marriages Dip To 30% In India, 25 Mn Stopped Worldwide: UNICEF
    There has been a significant drop in the number of child marriages in India -- from nearly 50 to 30 per cent -- in the last 10 years, a survey by UN children's agency Unicef showed on Tuesday.

    Child Marriages Dip To 30% In India, 25 Mn Stopped Worldwide: UNICEF

    Gangster Saraj Mintoo Arrested For Hindu Leader’s Murder In Punjab

    Gangster Saraj Mintoo Arrested For Hindu Leader’s Murder In Punjab
    As Per Police, He Is An ‘a-category’, Hardcore Gangster, Who Carried A Reward Of Rs 5 Lakh. This Is The First Time Saraj Has Been Arrested Despite His Long And Active Involvement In Crime.

    Gangster Saraj Mintoo Arrested For Hindu Leader’s Murder In Punjab

    30-Year-Old Man Commits Suicide By Jumping In Front Of Metro Train In Delhi

    30-Year-Old Man Commits Suicide By Jumping In Front Of Metro Train In Delhi
    A suicide note has been recovered from the man which said he was taking the step out of his own will, they added.

    30-Year-Old Man Commits Suicide By Jumping In Front Of Metro Train In Delhi

    Nirav Modi's Bankrupt American Firm Whets Buyer Interest

    The Punjab National Bank (PNB) is not shown as a creditor in the bankruptcy documents filed in a court here by three companies affiliated with Nirav Modi, who has been accused in a $2 billion-scam involving the nationalised financial institution

    Nirav Modi's Bankrupt American Firm Whets Buyer Interest