Veera scores with five distinctions

Veera Bhajan, who overcame the challenge of being born without arms, to earn seven CXC passes at the recent examinations, was the toast of her family yesterday. Veera, who turns 16 next Tuesday, earned distinctions in five subjects, Maths, English Language, English Literature, Physics and Accounts. She also gained a grade ‘A’ in Economics and a grade “two” in Spanish. In an interview with Newsday at her Felicity home yesterday, Veera said she never wanted anyone to see her as being different, so as a primary school student, she decided to work hard to overcome all her obstacles and succeed.

“Once you place your belief in God, look at all your obstacles as challenges and go towards winning your challenges, you would be okay and success would be your end result,” said Bhajan. The sweet taste of success (at CXC) came around 9.30 am yesterday, when Veera went to her school, St Augustine Girls High School (SAGHS), and discovered she had passed all seven subjects. “I was really happy,” said Veera. “I mean I knew I was going to do good in my examinations, but I was a little nervous this morning because I really wanted the results to be better than just good.” Recounting her days at SAGHS, Bhajan said she never felt left out of anything, nor did anyone make her feel inferior in any way. She said her teachers, friends, classmates and sister Reshma, who is an A’ Level student at SAGHS, made her feel comfortable.

She also said she was never given any special treatment at SAGHS, because she never wanted any — except perhaps for her writing desk, which had to be altered to fit her needs, since she writes with her left foot. Veera said the desk was altered so that her chair was higher than her desk. Asked about her examinations, Veera said she was allowed an extra ten minutes to every hour to complete her exams. She said she was nervous, but she knew she could do it because of her confidence in her work, her belief in God, and the three hours a day she put in studying, “with plenty breaks in between and lots of music for company.” The smiling teenager also praised the help she got from her family, especially her mom Ramdai, her sister, and all her friends at SAGHS as part of the recipe for her success.

Her father Pooran, a watchman at the Chaguanas Magistrates’ Court, said he was confident that the success his daughter had at the CXC examinations is just “the tip of the iceberg, with the sky being her only limit.” He said his entire family was happy with the success Veera had in her examinations, and intended to give her full support in whatever career path she might choose. He said they had given her the “key to success,” which is a good education, and she was the one who had taken those keys and opened up doors to a bright future. What’s next for this confident teenager? A’ Levels at SAGHS is the next step on the way to a career in the legal field.