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Mangalore Fruit Vendor Gets Padma Shri For Using Earnings To Build School For Underprivileged

by Sanjana Shenoy
Mangalore Fruit Vendor Gets Padma Shri For Using Earnings To Build School For Underprivileged

Inspiring are those people who wish to build a better life for others than what they have. Harekala Hajabba, an illiterate fruit vendor from Mangalore, Karnataka, used all his savings to build a school in his village for the underprivileged. The selfless fruit vendor has been awarded the ‘Padma Shri’ by the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind for his noble contributions to society. Read on to know more about his inspiring tale.

Illiterate Fruit Seller Built School So Children Have Better Future

65-year-old man, Hajabba is an orange seller in Mangalore. He is an illiterate man who was deprived of education as his village, Newpadapu didn’t have a school. In order to not let the children of his village suffer a fate like him, Hajabba used all his savings from selling oranges to build a school in his village in 1995. According to The News Minute, he got approval from the education department, sanction from the Dakshina Kannada Zilla panchayat and finally ensured that kids in his village had access to education. According to ANI, today this school has 175 students with classes going up to the 10th standard.

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fruit vendor builds school
Picture Credits: The News Minute

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Harekala Hajabba Gets Awarded Padma Shri By President Ram Nath Kovind

In January 2020, Hajabba revealed to TNM that he wanted to establish a pre-university college on the same premise as the school. He hoped the government would start a PU college, as most students in his village quit school after 10th standard. Hajabba is a well-known figure in his hometown Mangalore, revered with local awards, his story is also part of the UG program at Mangalore University. The selfless fruit seller has been conferred with the Padma Shri Award by the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind in Delhi. His story is indeed a very inspiring one. An illiterate fruit vendor has lit the lives of over a hundred students in his village through his savings.