Mum's viral barefoot race sparks debate over India's education crisis

**Mum's viral barefoot race sparks debate over India's education crisis**

Rambai Ranveer ran a 3km sprint, hoping to earn enough prize money to buy books for her daughter

With no training and not even a pair of running shoes, Ramabai Ranveer ran barefoot to victory in her first race in August.

The 47-year-old widow entered a 3km (1.86-mile) community race with one aim: to win prize money that would help pay for her two daughters’ education.

When she finished first, Ramabai, who is from Maharashtra in western India, was overjoyed. The 3,000-rupee ($31; £23) prize would help her buy books and study materials for her daughters.

It was not a large sum. It would not come close to covering the cost of higher education in India, or even a course at the coaching centre where one of her daughters is preparing for a government recruitment examination.

But footage of her barefoot run quickly spread across social media and newspapers, striking a chord as India’s education system comes under unusual scrutiny.

“Is it glory or a source of shame for us as a society?” one social media user asked.

Before long, a woman who had never expected to become a runner was being presented as a symbol of something much larger: the extreme lengths some Indian families go to in the hope that education will give their children a better life.

For Ramabai, the choice to run was straightforward.

“My elder daughter came to me early in the morning and said, ‘Mummy, I want to take part in a running race,’” she told BBC News Marathi from her home in Beed district.

Ramabai has been her family’s only breadwinner since her husband died in 2012

“I asked her where it was and she said it was nearby. She told me that if she won the prize money, it would help with her education.”

Her younger daughter, Arati, lives in Nanded and was struggling to afford books.

“I couldn’t send her money to buy books and because of that she didn’t speak to me on the phone for eight days,” Ramabai said. “So I decided I had to run and win the race.”

When her slippers kept slipping off, she took them off, gathered her sari and ran barefoot, pulling ahead to win the women’s 30-60 category.

Her elder daughter, Pooja, also won a prize after finishing second in her age group. But she saved her praise for her mother, calling her courageous.

Against women aged 30 to 60, Ramabai raced to victory in a saree and flip-flops despite no preparation

Ramabai has been the family’s sole provider since her husband died in 2012.

“I did whatever work I could find,” she said. “I picked soybeans and chickpeas in other people’s fields. I also collected turmeric, processed it and sold it.”

She left school at 13. Her daughters, she says, should have the chances she never did.

“I believe that as long as I am alive, I should do everything I can to give my daughters a good education.”

That hope is shared by millions of Indian families. But getting a child through the education system and into a secure career can mean years of preparation, fierce competition and, for many families, significant expense.

One of Ramabai’s daughters is preparing for police recruitment and the other for the civil services — two highly competitive paths to the security and status linked with a sought-after government job.

Ramabai's elder daughter Pooja (l) is training for police recruitment at the school where her mother works as a cook

Millions of young Indians spend years preparing for such exams, often paying for coaching and study materials. But confidence in the system has been shaken by repeated allegations of question-paper leaks and other irregularities.

Those controversies have fed a broader sense of frustration among young Indians over education, jobs and the increasingly uncertain promise of a secure future. That frustration has also driven student-led protests and youth movements calling for changes to India’s education system.

For families like Ramabai’s, education is something they sacrifice for every day.

After her husband’s death, she took whatever work she could find. She now cooks at the coaching centre where one of her daughters is preparing for police recruitment.

Ramabai’s run also drew the attention of the authorities. Earlier this month, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant ordered local officials to provide her with financial assistance of 50,000 rupees.

But Sukhadeo Thorat, a former chairman of the University Grants Commission, says the family’s story highlights wider structural problems.

“If a woman is compelled to struggle so hard for her daughters’ education, it shows that government education schemes are not reaching people adequately,” he said. “Both the central and state governments run a variety of schemes. The problem is that implementation remains weak.”

For Ramabai, though, the debate comes second. What matters most is making sure her daughters have a better future.

“I don’t want them to go through the hardships I have faced,” she said. “I don’t want them to struggle through mud or travel under the scorching sun and rain. Whatever I have suffered, I don’t want my daughters to suffer the same.”