Basudha Modak Has Won Women Hall of Fame Award Visionary Leader Award

Education is not preparation for Life, It is life itself -John Dewey

Its impossible to move through the world without Learning and gaining wisdom along the way

Ms Basudha Modak is an Electronics Engineer. The only one of her batch, from Agartala Tripura. She got a seat in her JEE as an Electrical engineer, and PCB as Vet Science. Her dream was supported by her father and he took her to Maharashtra to pursue her journey of who she was to become today.

She always had a passion for making the hardest subjects easy and accessible to everyone and tuitions were her only steps to test herself. Even then she found it incredibly surprising how women joined a tough profession as an engineer to go into a good marriage, but not able to hold jobs due to lack of family support.

A senior whom she went to one day for help on a subject, faced humiliation from her inlaws because she didn’t finish sweeping the house .This senior who was the University topper , then .was not allowed to work.

She saw and she carried it with her.

Life happened and she got the incredible opportunity to shift to South Africa. Coincidentally, that point of time she was also unemployed but freelancing as a consultant. Life got unproductive very soon and her domestic advised her to teach at Diepsloot, Tembisa , Soweto, wherever necessary.

In these little steps, she started finding herself because of the incredible first-generation learners. Access to technology, study material, phones was a distant dream where the only thought in these girls mind were will she be continuing with them tomorrow?

Will She get some foods or paper or a few pens, or some sweets when they are hungry at home? They didn’t believe in themselves even.

She was accepted as a World Pulse Digital Ambassador and became the top 3 changemakers soon after. Then Wiki Women, Top 40 Indians By AACI soon followed. But her heart was never in these awards and accolades.

She wishes, desired, dreamed of getting these girls to complete matric and get into university. But pregnancy, drug abuse, lack of a  learning centre, non-supportive guardians, all stopped her daily

She again was guided to start a whatsapp chat group for support and reskilling of any girl or women ..When the lockdown started, it was more of getting access to food packets, finding support for health failure and was extremely active then…In May the  same year , she was chosen to be the Chapter Ambassador of Technovation, where  she had volunteered long back whilst in Delhi, India Chapter.

The  amazing founder, Tara , supported and aligned with her belief and passion of bringing more girls in to S.T.E.M. The idea was simple. Get young girls to step up to solve problems in their community with technology. Supported by a network of mentors, volunteers, parents.

Developing their leadership skills, keeping them focussed was the goal…But the concept of education is different in African continent. This mission  is a full-time job. Getting access to industrial experts is incredibly easy , getting them into the townships is extremely hard.

 Mentors often don’t agree to travel, so this becomes our personal responsibility to make sure the classes are held on time. Training the teachers at schools during the summer, winter holidays is a necessity. Being accessible to the students at night, making sure they have data, food and sleep is also a necessity. Often after completion, like last year itself, students don’t get to upload the projects on time due to power failure for weeks.

 When we get access to resources, due to available funding, she has to decide the resource allocation, which remains incredibly tough. Deciding between toilets, Wendy house converted to a learning centre or food for the participating girls , gives a view of how much we don’t need in life…Corporate donation of stationery is most coveted, as often when mentors come to meet, their first question is these.

The other problem is industry professionals want to connect to the girls through zoom in established learning centres. This is still a rarity. A tarpaulin, a paper board is all we have to teach girls coding. It is having every single girl access to learning…

Our problems remain, but this year the first batch of these incredible girls’ step into university, a first generation of learners who believe in themselves. Those who support this vision of Mma B as she is fondly recognised and used as a scary word  for kids who don’t study, it seems.

We only need people who believe in us, in our vision, from the townships, for the townships. Our passion and our dreams have to be felt as an insider. You cannot donate time or money one day, feel you have done your duty and vanish .

Look forward to every reader here, joining us. The ripple effect of education, that sustains future generations.