A rickshaw driver’s journey to become an engineer

From selling vegetables to driving rickshaws, Hameer Ali has fought all odds to pursue education

KARACHI: Exhausted from driving passengers around the city in his rickshaw, Hameer Ali comes home and studies all night. He continues to work tirelessly to pursue his dream of becoming an engineer.

'A man can be destroyed but not defeated', is the phrase the twenty-year-old would tell himself whenever he felt like giving up. Despite financial strains, he is currently pursuing telecommunication engineering from Dawood University of Engineering and Technology.



A life of struggle

"We live in a society where lack of education is a grave problem," said Ali. "Only a few fortunate individuals are able to attain it while the rest continue to suffer."

In 2008, when Ali was studying in class eighth, his father, Manzoor Hussain, retired as an accountant from a bank in Sukkur. Soon, the family moved to Karachi in search of better employment opportunities.

The subsequent financial crunch forced Ali to sell vegetables at his uncle's shop after school. Yet, he fought all odds and completed his education from New Grammar Government Boys Secondary School, Sachal Town, and Jauhar Degree College. "I never permitted my family members to interfere in my life," said Ali. "Since we were facing financial problems it led to a big question mark on my studies, yet my family always supported me." Among his siblings, Ali is the only one who is pursuing higher education. Four of his brothers have studied till matriculation and two of them also drive a rickshaw. The family lives in Bilawal Shah Noorani Goth, Gulshan-e-Iqbal. Ali has wanted to be an engineer since childhood, remarked Hussain. All young people should continue with the same zeal and dedication to attain education as it will help them, he claimed.

Helping hand

The English Access Microscholarship Program, offered by the US Consulate, Karachi, played an important role in helping Ali reach his goal. The programme teaches English language skills to students from underprivileged backgrounds. Ali was one of the students of the programme from 2012 to 2014.



"Financial issues tend to encompass people like a nightmare," he said. "Such programmes play an integral role in encouraging students from poor backgrounds to continue their education and make a difference in society."

Quratulain Hussain, who taught Ali while he was at the programme, recalls Ali as an active participant. He would also teach other students voluntarily. "He was motivated to overcome all the obstacles between him and his education," she added. "My two teachers, including Miss Quratulain and Miss Ayesha, constantly encouraged me to never give up," said Ali.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 10^th, 2016.