Guwahati: For 16-year-old Lalrinnungi, it was business as usual last week as she helped her parents sell vegetables at a roadside market in Mizoram’s Aizawl.
However, the youngest daughter of daily wage earners Zothantluanga and Lalhlimpuii was soon the centre of attention as customers walked up to congratulate her and vied for pictures after news spread that the16-year-old had topped the state’s High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) exam with a score of 97.2 per cent.
Lalrinnungi, who secured 486 marks out of 500, is the first person from her village Sihphir to have achieved the feat.
Speaking to News18, she said her family’s struggles with poverty motivated her to do well. “My parents are school dropouts and don’t even own a piece of land. They fetch vegetables from people’s farms and sell them in the market. Seeing their struggle pushed me to work hard,” Lalrinnungi said.
For Lalrinnungi, who often had to skip classes to sell milk so the family could make ends meet, the journey has just begun. The 16-year-old was keen to appear for civil services but given her family’s financial condition, she has decided to opt for medicine as she wants to serve people.
On that note, she adds that she may like to dabble in politics too someday. “There is such disparity between the rich and the poor. I want to fix it,” she says.
Lalrinnungi started her schooling at Young Learner’s School, Sihphir, which was later taken over by the Presbyterian Church and renamed Presbyterian English School. After completing class 8, she joined St Joseph Higher Secondary School as a boarder. Her teachers, who describe her as an obedient and brilliant student, also put in extra effort after seeing the girl’s excellent score in class 9.
Lalrinnungi’s father, overwhelmed with her performance, said though people were praising them, they had no contribution in her achievement. “God has made this possible and she has tried her best to reach here,” he says.
The 16-year-old’s mother, meanwhile, spoke about her daughter’s maturity and hard work. “Lalrinnungi is our youngest child but she is like an adult. She is a very obedient kid. We taught our children that they should not feel ashamed of doing the right thing. She is truly a hardworking girl,” she says.
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