Kollam:
Megha Jacob enjoys every moment in school including the half-hour lunch-break. The 13-year-old had topped her class and won lower secondary scholarship 3 years ago, when she was in class 6. That meant a reward of a mere 100 rupees. Surprisingly, the education department did not give that little amount even 6 months after it was announced, until Megha filed an application under the RTI act.
"We filed an application to the public info officer, but we got no reply. Then we filed a petition to the state information commissioner. Suddenly after a few days, all of us in Kollam who were awaiting scholarship amount got it," says Megha.
The information commission found out that the money was delayed because the person in-charge to demand draft it was on leave.
Megha Jacob was all of 10 years old when she fixed a simple problem in the education department which held the scholarship amount for many like her. A little girl some from a small town like Kollam has shown that red tapism and slow processing with extensive paperwork in our government offices is a system that can be changed.
Hundred rupees as scholarship amount was not good enough to buy even books and being born in an affluent family, Megha could have given up easily like any of us, reluctant to fight, or even find out.
"It is my right to get that money, I made it with own hard work. All officers should give away amount small or big of any type of scholarship," put forth Megha Jacob.