Meet India's youngest school principal

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New Delhi: This year in our special series Real Heros, we feature India's youth heroes.

Babar Ali from West Bengal, has just one passion in life, education for all.
That's why 16 year old Babar is perhaps India's youngest school principal.
Another day has ended at this school in West Bengal's Murshidabad district.
But for one particular student it's time to start a new chapter.

This is the extraordinary story of Babar Ali who studies in Class 11. Since 2002, every evening, between 1600 hours and 1900 hours, he takes on the role of a principal perhaps India's youngest at a school - the Anand Siksha Niketan in Gangapur village.

Principal, Ananda Shiksha Niketan Babar Ali says, “Aami onk dekhechi ki aamr motor boyesher chele ra cricket khelto football khelto..kintu aami eishober shonge jukto chilam na.Aar aamar porano porano khela tai sho theke bhalo lagto aar eta korar por ei aami ekhane ashe school take dara koriyechi. (Unlike other kids I never wanted to play football or cricket. In my younger days I used to play the role of a teacher and student).

What started off as child's play took the shape of a school on October 29, 2002. At the tender age of 9, with a little help from his parents, Babar set up a room to teach on his ancestral land.

Ali says, “Aami jokhon 5 e pori tokhon ei vidyaloy ta aami 8 jon chhatra chhatri der ke niye shuru kori. She chhatra chatri aaj 8 jon teke baedhe 600 jon hoyeche. (When I was in Class 5 I started this school with 8 students…it has been a long journey since then,,from 8 students we have almost 600 students now).

But getting 600 students to enroll was no easy task. In this hamlet, abject poverty means education is a luxury few can afford. So Babar makes sure that the education at his school is absolutely free.

Today the school has classes from 1 to 8 and a staff strength of 10 including 5 teachers aged between 13 and 18, students themselves of classes 9th to 12th.

There are some hard realities that Babar faces even today. The government provides funds for the midday meal and books till class 4. For other expenses he has to depend on donations from well wishers…which is never enough.
Ali says, “We still don't have a school building.”
Plans are many, so are the hardships. But Babar knows that all these years, running the school has never been a burden on his young shoulders.