Pune, May 9: Four-year-old Rizwan Rajmohammad Shaikh can tell you facts about the states, rattle of information on science and technology, geography and even name state and world capitals. He can also explain chemical reactions, human physiology and scientific inventions with ease.
Yet, it’s a tragedy when the boy with amazing recall from Wing, a hamlet in Khandala taluka of Satara district, does not have the money to go to school. His parents, Rajmohammad and Ruksar Shaikh, sister Sania and younger brother Ayan, live in abject poverty.
However, there is a ray of hope. The Pune Police both rural and city have offered to help the family. While police commissioner Jayant Umranikar has promised his father a job in a private company, Superintendent of Pune Rural police Vishwas Nangre Patil has said he will sponsor Rizwan’s education in any of the top schools with boarding facilities under their jurisdiction.
“I found Rizwan has amazing grasping power and a sharp memory. He answered a number of general knowledge questions with ease and in no time. I have assured his parents that the Pune Rural Police will sponsor his education in the best schools with boarding facilities. He can even get admission in the best schools in Baramati,” Nangre Patil said. He now plans to take Rizwan to meet district guardian minister Ajit Pawar and has assured his father a job with the welfare department.
Umranikar, who also met Rizwan, said he had a fantastic memory. “We are trying to locate a job for Rizwan’s father in the private sector so that he afford Rizwan’s education.” Help has also come from Mumbai police commissioner DN Jadhav who promised to help Rizwan after he spoke to him over the telephone on Tuesday evening. Jadhav has invited Rajmohammad and Rizwan for a meeting.
Rizwan, who is already a celebrity in Satara district, and his family, who migrated to Pune in January, have been offered a small room for free by police havaldar Vijay Raghunath Tembhekar posted at Bharati Vidyapeeth police station. Tembhekar could not bare the plight of the family who came to meet President APJ Abdul Kalam at Raj Bhavan when he was visiting Pune in January.
The President met the boy and chatted with him for half an hour.”Rizwan told him he wanted to become a scientist,” said Rajmohammad.
It all started a year ago with Rajmohammad, who has studied up to SSC, writing some tables and Rizwan learning them quickly. In the next two days he had learnt tables up to 50.
“As of now, Rizwan can answer more than 4,000 general knowledge questions from the MPSC syllabus, knows the entire standard IV and VII scholarship exam syllabus and knows much about science, mathematics, geography, basic English, important landmarks of Indian history, world and state capitals, modern scientific inventions and numerical measures of earth, India and Maharashtra,” said his father.
The couple is worried about Rizwan. “I want to give him an education, even if it is in the Marathi medium. But I don’t even have a job,” said his father. “We want him to go to school. But we have no money even for food. I am willing to work to ensure he studies,” said Ruksar.
