She left school as a child, returned at 105 and scored 100% in maths: Bhageerathi Amma’s story

At 105, when most people would consider their school years a distant memory, Bhageerathi Amma picked up her textbooks again. The woman from Prakkulam in Kollam returned to formal education in 2019 and appeared for the Kerala State Literacy Mission’s Class 4 equivalency examination. She scored 75% overall and secured full marks in mathematics, earning national attention as one of the country’s oldest learners to clear such an examination.

Her achievement, however, was shaped by a story that began nearly a century earlier, when circumstances forced her to leave school before she could complete her education.

Family responsibilities ended her childhood education

According to Deccan Herald, Bhageerathi Amma had to stop studying when she was still young after the death of her mother left her responsible for her younger siblings.


She later married at a young age and became a widow in her 30s. With six children to raise, education once again had to take a back seat.

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For decades, the opportunity to return to formal studies remained out of reach. It was only through the Kerala State Literacy Mission’s programmes that she was eventually able to resume learning.

At 105, she began preparing for an equivalency examination despite the enormous gap between her childhood schooling and her return to education.

She took her exam from home at 105

Bhageerathi Amma’s age and health meant that she could not follow the usual examination process. She wrote the Class 4 equivalency examination from home instead of travelling to an examination centre.

Her age, however, did not diminish her commitment to the test. She completed the examination with an overall score of 75% and achieved 100% in mathematics.

The result quickly brought attention to her achievement and the determination that had led her back into education after decades away.

Narendra Modi highlighted her journey

Bhageerathi Amma’s story soon reached Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who spoke about her during the February 2020 episode of Mann Ki Baat.

Modi highlighted the fact that she had been forced to discontinue her education as a girl because of family responsibilities, yet returned to studies at the age of 105. He described her journey as inspirational while emphasising the importance of retaining the desire to learn.

For Bhageerathi Amma, clearing the Class 4 examination was not intended to be the final milestone.

According to the Deccan Herald report, she wanted to continue with higher equivalency examinations, including the seventh-standard level, and eventually hoped to attempt Class 10.

Her plans reflected an important aspect of her story: she was not simply revisiting an unfinished childhood. She was still setting new educational goals.

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Her achievement earned a Nari Shakti Puraskar

In 2020, Bhageerathi Amma was selected for the Nari Shakti Puraskar, which was presented on International Women’s Day.

Because of her advanced age and health, she was unable to travel to Delhi to receive the honour herself. She sought permission for someone else to accept the award on her behalf.

The recognition also placed her achievement within the wider issue of women’s access to education. Her schooling had not ended because she lacked the ability or desire to learn. It had been interrupted by circumstances and family obligations that demanded her attention from an early age.

Returning to education decades later became a way of reclaiming an opportunity that had once been taken away from her.

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Bhageerathi Amma died at 107

Bhageerathi Amma died at her home in Kollam in July 2021 at the age of 107 following age-related health problems.

Her life left behind more than the distinction of becoming one of the country’s oldest learners to clear an equivalency examination. It also offered a reminder that educational ambitions do not necessarily disappear simply because circumstances force them into the background.

For Bhageerathi Amma, the return to school came after marriage, widowhood, raising six children and decades away from formal education. Yet when the opportunity finally arrived, she chose to take it.

Her story endures because her achievement was not only about passing an examination at an extraordinary age. It was about returning to a goal she had been unable to pursue as a child and continuing to look ahead even at 105.