Mumbai man pays poor girl Rs 120,000 for 12 mangoes to help her study online

SHE was struggling to attend the online classes in times of the pandemic because of lack of technological support. But Tulsi Kumari met a businessman who, sitting thousands of miles away, solved her problem in the most unthinkable way possible. The benevolent man paid Rs 120,000 ($1,614) to the poor girl for just a dozen mangoes so that she could buy a smartphone and continue with her online studies.

Tulsi, 11, is a resident of a locality in Jamshedpur city in the North Indian state of Jharkhand and has been collecting mangoes from trees planted in government quarters and selling them on a roadside pavement so that she could accumulate the money to buy the device to continue her studies. A fifth-standard student in a government school, Tulsi needed the phone to keep pace with the classes. But getting a pricey device became a long wait for the girl whose father lost his job in the lockdown.

Someone recorded a video of Tulsi selling the fruits on the pavement and it soon went viral in the media. It reached Ameya Hete, managing director of Valuable Edutainment Pvt Ltd, which facilitates virtual classes, in Mumbai in the state of Maharashtra and he immediately reached out to Tulsi. He bought 12 mangoes from her at a price of Rs 10,000 ($134) per piece. He also announced that he would bear the full expenses of Tulsi’s education.

Benefactor impressed by girl's fighting spirit

Hete told the media that he was particularly impressed by the little girl’s fighting spirit. “She didn’t blame her fate or seek alms. This is why I said we have bought her mangoes and not done any charity work. This is to not just encourage her and acknowledge the dignity in work but also to encourage others not to give up,” he said. In a tweet last week, Hete said, "We are proud of you Tulsi for setting an example and not submitting to your reality. “Where there is a will there is always a way"."

Tulsi, who now has a smartphone in her kitty, was happy to get the help from the businessman and said she wanted to become a teacher. She also said that she had never imagined that her story of selling mangoes would attract a businessman in Mumbai, located more than 1,100 miles from her city. She also said that she would not have to sell mangoes again.

Her father Srimal Kumar also thanked Hete for helping her daughter at a time when he had found it extremely difficult to support the education of his three daughters. He said Hete appeared like God and helped Tulsi’s education by crediting Rs 120,000 in his bank account. He said the kind gesture will facilitate his daughter’s dream of becoming a teacher.