Arnab Chatterjee brings laurels despite all odds

By Sunita Shukla

Despite all odds, Arnab Chatterjee, of Bhavan’s Bhagwandas Purohit Vidya Mandir, Ashti, has secured 89 per cent in the CBSE Class X examination. His father Pallab Chatterjee’s satisfaction and joy knew no bounds after the result was declared. After all the effort and care put in from age five onwards, when 16-year-old Arnab was detected with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) that rendered him physically-disabled to a great extent, this result is nothing short of a miracle. Arnab has been a student of the Bhavan’s school since primary class and all who know him are very happy for him. It was a formidable task for Arnab to undertake the Class X board exam. Pallab Chatterjee is all praise for the school that reached out and cooperated with him. Arnab used to be taken in an ambulance to the examination centre, along with Dr Rajesh Kale and a medical attendant in tow, with all medical equipment in place.

Since he is bed ridden, he was carried on a stretcher to the special room where the school had made all arangements, along with a bed in place for him to give his exam. Anushka Bhagat, certified by Government Medical College, Nagpur, was assigned by the school for Arnab to write his exams. The school all along took special care of Arnab in his studies, said Pallab, but for the Board exams it went out of the way to provide every possible assistance. Arnab, a slim frail child, with no siblings, lost his mother to COVID two years back during the delta phase. Bereft of close relatives, including his maternal grandparents, Aaji and Mausi and Mausa who also passed away few years back, his father and octogenarian paternal grandfather are his companions at home. He finds solace in books and his favourite subjects are space, astrophysics, stars, planets and NASA. He can speak English and Hindi fluently and enjoys using his mobile phone.

Arnab would spend scheduled hours to study for the exam. Actually several hours were needed for him to be put on the BiPap machine to help him breathe easy. Every afternoon from 1 to 4, and later at night from 9:30 to 6:00 in the morning he was on the BiPap machine to relieve him of the pressure on his lungs, and clear them. Study hours were ususally in school and evening at home from 5:30 to 9:30 until it was time for bed. For Arnab’s father it is a very proud moment indeed, and he feels it is God, his wife and the school’s blessings that have helped Arnab attain the splendid result. Chatterjee, a chemical engineer academically, but now into medical sales as a field representative, has been playing the role of mother and father.

He recalls how Arnab had to be admitted to the ICU twice in June and December last year. But despite such tremendous odds he continued encouraging him with his school studies. The Board result has been a perfect outcome and they are both rapturous in this moment. Arnab received constant support from his teachers and school Principal Vandana Bisen. Arnab celebrated his 16th birthday with the Principal, class teacher Suchi Ralhan, and his classmates of Standard X-A who reached his home with a birthday cake and candles that lit up his day with hope and happiness. Arnab said he would always cherish the fact that he was a student of Bhavan’s Bhagwandas Purohit Vidya Mandir, Ashti, where students imbibe the philosophy: “All good things do not come to an end. They stay alive in the form of Good Human Beings.”