On 5th September, India bows in gratitude to its teachers, honouring the birth anniversary of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan—an extraordinary philosopher, statesman, and educationist who believed that “true teachers are those who help us think for ourselves.” His life reminds us that education is not merely the transmission of knowledge, but the awakening of minds and the shaping of destinies.
At Mukti, this spirit finds a living expression through our teachers. They are not formally appointed educators in government schools, nor are they always highly credentialed professionals. They are local volunteers—educated men and women from within the very villages where deprivation is greatest. Many of them once faced the same struggles as today’s students: unemployment despite education, uncertainty despite effort. Yet, instead of despair and bowing to fate, they chose purpose- stepping forward to carry the light of education to the children of their own community, and to illuminate the neighbourhood around them
Mukti’s mission is not to run parallel schools, but to stand beside the most underserved children of rural Bengal—to ensure that no boy or girl is denied the right to learn simply because of poverty, isolation, or circumstance. This becomes possible because Mukti trains and empowers local youth and community members to step into the role of educators.
And what difference they made?
Take the story of Tulsi Ghorami, a bright Class VII girl from the Sundarbans. With her father working as a migrant labourer and her mother managing the household, Tulsi was expected to cook, clean, and take care of her younger siblings. Studies nearly slipped out of her grasp and she stopped coming to her Mukti Support School. That is when Bhagabati Moira, a Mukti teacher from the same village, stepped in. With gentle persuasion and after-school support, she convinced Tulsi’s family that education could transform her future. Today, Tulsi is back in class, confident, and already dreaming of becoming a nurse.
Ajay Hansda, a young boy from Boldi, Jhargram who studied at a Mukti Support School. Coming from a family with limited means, he could easily have slipped away from education like so many children in his village. But with encouragement and guidance from his MSS teacher Laxman Mandi, he not only completed his
Madhyamik in 2025 but also promised to return as a volunteer teacher. Today, Ajay visits houses in his tribal village and stands in front of children just like him once to inspire them to stay in school, to keep believing in possibilities. His journey shows how one teacher’s faith can create another.
There are hundreds of such children—boys who might otherwise have been sent to work, girls who might have been forced into early marriage—brought back into the fold of education because Mukti teachers refused to let hope die.
These are not stories of fiction—they are living realities. Each success is a testament to the compassion, resilience, and quiet leadership of Mukti’s teachers. They are change-makers who light lamps of hope in their own communities, nurturing both minds and futures.
On this Teacher’s Day, we salute them. They are not just tutors—they are mentors, motivators, and role models. Their contribution cannot be measured in salaries or titles, but in the smiles of children who dare to dream again.
Mukti warmly invites more socially conscious individuals from all villages to join this journey—as education volunteers, as torchbearers of transformation. For when one teacher lights a flame, an entire village can shine brighter.