All you need is a dash of courage

"Can you pass me my braces?" Rekha asks her father, as she gets ready to head to college.

Clipping them meticulously onto her legs, she proceeds to gather her books before stepping out.

"Of course I know that I have limitations, but do I not have the right to study too?"

"They told my mother that the child will be a burden to you for the rest of your lives. Pray to god that she dies because if you decide to let her live you will weep for the rest of your lives," Rekha says.

Despite the taunts, the mother’s heart wished for her child to survive. Death evaded Rekha, but the polio left behind a scar that would serve as an agonizing reminder that life would never be the same again. The luxury of normalcy became a myth for Rekha, as she lost the movement of her legs.

Simple everyday tasks felt like a treacherous expedition. Going to the public toilet was her worst nightmare- her sister had to carry her most of the time.

Being a child with special needs, attending school was a distant reality.

Grappling with her own inhibitions and poverty, Rekha questioned her reason for living.

"I really wished to study. My sister used to go to school but I was unable to go, as I would have to travel a distance. With my condition, it was next to impossible. The rent for a rickshaw was something we couldn’t afford,” she says. “My whole life was confined to home, doing sweeping, swabbing and household work. I constantly fought with God for making me this way. I questioned Why? Why was I cursed?”

As luck would have it, an organisation opened a bridge school close to her house.

"I studied till grade 5 there. When I used to study there, in the tests I used to come 2nd or 3rd in class," says Rekha.

Equipped with a wheelchair provided by World Vision, Rekha now possessed a solution to her immobility. She applied for admission to a formal school.

At the school, "They questioned whether I would be able to come regularly to school given my condition. Of course I know that I have limitations, but do I not have the right to study too? How I reach school is my problem it is dependent on me. Will they ever ask a normal child how will they get to school? It is just assumed that they will come. Disability doesn’t restrict my movement I told them I can still walk on crutches," says she.

Rekha participated in forum discussions organised by World Vision, and these helped kindle a fire within her; transforming a weak and dejected Rekha to a feisty advocate for children with special needs.

"I started getting opportunities through World Vision to share about my experiences with children just like me in different events and platforms. As a person with special needs I got to pose questions to government officials about why people like me are alienated and made to feel different. The strength and the confidence to share about all the challenges and disappointments that we face because of lack of privileges somehow came from within me. Now I know that I am not less than anybody, I can also speak out for my rights and I know my rights," says a fired up Rekha.

Refusing to be a victim anymore, Rekha decided to take the high road, advocating for the rights of children with special needs. From being a national convener of the National Forum for Children with Disability, created by World Vision, to speaking at the New York UN general assembly as a representative of a children’s delegation, Rekha continues to work towards to her goal of becoming a social worker.

Rekha, along with other children delegates and Princess Sarah Zeid of Jordan at the UN General Assembly “My World Survey” initiative (post 2015 discussions) in New York in 20013.

From a non-school-goer to completing her 12th Grade and now entering the second year of college, Rekha embodies the potency of a tenacious spirit. Pursuing a degree in social work with the help of World Vision, Rekha gears up to advocate for children just like her who are deprived of their basic rights.

Learn more about disability inclusion for children.