From Factory Floor to First Bench: Ramesh’s Fight for a Future

Ramesh was just 10 when he first held a welding rod instead of a pencil.

His village in Bihar had one rule: survival first, dreams later. His father had passed away early, and his mother worked long hours breaking stones at a nearby quarry. Ramesh was pulled out of school and sent to a small workshop in the city to “help feed the family.”

At that age, he didn’t understand laws or rights. He only understood hunger.

The factory paid him ₹500 a month. In return, he worked 12 hours a day, inhaling smoke, carrying metal scraps, and sleeping on a torn mat in a corner. If he messed up, the owner shouted — sometimes slapped. But Ramesh didn’t cry. He was told boys don’t cry. Instead, he stopped speaking much at all.

One rainy afternoon, a woman named Vandana entered the workshop during a local inspection. She worked with a local NGO that rescued child laborers. Ramesh looked at her like he looked at people on TV — distant, unreal.

But she noticed him. The burn marks. The small hands. The silent eyes.

Within a week, he was taken out of the factory and placed in a rehabilitation shelter. It wasn’t easy. He was scared, confused, and angry. But slowly, under the care of the staff, something changed. He was given books, food, friends — and freedom.

It took him two years to catch up on lost education. He worked harder than anyone else. The day he wrote his first essay, titled “Main School Jaana Chahta Hoon,” his teacher cried.

Today, Ramesh is 19. He’s studying to become a social worker.

He visits villages and cities, speaking to parents and employers, telling them, “No child should have to choose between hunger and hope.” His words carry weight — because they carry truth.

Ramesh didn’t just survive child labour — he reclaimed his stolen childhood and is now fighting to protect others.

Why This Story Matters

India has millions of invisible children like Ramesh — trapped in factories, homes, and fields. But one rescue, one school, one voice can change everything.