Exams put off to save student’s life

Exams put off to save student’s life

Rescheduled Engg Exams Help Classmates Raise 10L For Her Treatment

M N Samdani TNN 

Nellore:In a rare instance, Sri Venkateswara University postponed the examinations of engineering stream for a week to let students collect donations to save the life of a student. Moved by the plight of their classmate E Preeti, who is struggling with a lifethreatening disease, the students of NBKR Institute of Technology in Nellore requested the university authorities to reschedule the examinations so that they could go door-to-door and collect donations to fund the treatment.
    Preeti, a final year student of NBKRIT, is the daughter of a car driver in Madanapalle of Chittoor district. About three months ago, the 20-year-old Preeti complained of severe stomachache and nausea. Parents took her to local hospitals, where the doctors, after thorough examination, referred her case to CMC, Vellore. The worried parents rushed her to Vellore and subsequently to a private hospital in Bangalore. In the process, the poor family spent nearly Rs 10 lakh for visiting various hospitals and for medical tests by selling their small house and other valuables in hope of seeing their child back home hale and healthy. To their utter shock, the doctors at Vellore diagnosed that Preeti’s liver was completely damaged and required transplantation. 
    Although David, father of the girl, came forward to donate his organ, the hospital authorities said that the treatment would cost Rs 50 lakh. The stunned parents took Preeti home and started knocking every door, seeking financial assistance for the liver transplantation. Parents were completely traumatised as the hospital authorities said that the survival chances of Preeti were remote if the transplantation was not carried out immediately. Upon learning that Preeti might not return to the college, her classmates at NBKRIT, too, were distressed.
    But, soon overcoming the sorrow, about 540 students of final year engineering rushed to the director of the college, V Vijayakumar Reddy with a request to allow them to go out and collect donations by skipping classes. Touched by the students resolve, the college management, too, offered assistance and allowed the students to spare no efforts in collecting donations. Forming about 30 groups, the students went around Nellore town and nearby villages for nearly a week and started collecting donations.
    Meanwhile, the university announced the schedule for the first semester examinations from November 14. Not worried by this unexpected development, the resourceful students requested the college director to seek postponement of the examinations on humanitarian grounds. “Vice-chancellor W Rajendra conceded students’ requests with a view to saving a life. This could be the first time that a university has rescheduled examinations to allow students to collect funds for a noble cause,” college director Vijayakumar Reddy told TOI. The philanthropists and bighearted people donated generously for the ‘Save Preeti’ fund. The students collected nearly Rs 10 lakh and got Preeti admitted to Asian Institute of Gastroenterology, Hyderabad, two days ago. Classmates of Preeti promised to do more after clearing the examinations which would now start on Nov 21. Donors could meet David @  90523 31271.