Let us sacrifice our today so that our children can have a better tomorrow.” – A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
In this competitive era, everybody is embroiled in a race of going ahead of others, making a shining career, and securing a future. With the population going up and resources declining, this competition is further toughening. The lack of a social security system has forced most of the aspirants to become opportunists and careerists. However, we still have selfless souls that see beyond their individual selves. The world is never without people who uphold the highest ideals of human life and follow them, no matter how much it costs their personal interest. The person under discussion here is one such great being – Roman Saini. Dr. Roman Saini is an Indian educator, MBBS from AIIMS and an Ex-IAS officer. One of the youngest to join Indian civil services, Dr. Saini left his job and devoted himself to his free education initiative “Unacademy”, which is now quite popular among the students who prepare for competitive exams in India.
Early Years
On 27 July 1991, Roman Saini was born in the Pink City of India –Jaipur. Apparently not a bright student, Saini cleared the entrance test and was enrolled at the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences for MBBS course. In 2013, he passed the civil services examination in his first attempt. Moreover, Saini was one of the top 20 candidates that year. So, in his early twenties, Saine had become an IAS officers and was posted as Assistant Collector in Madhya Pradesh. However, Saini by that time was caught with a new zeal –that was to spread the education in the country, in particular among the deprived sections. Eventually, In 2016, Saini signed his resignation and went on to devote more time to his free education mission, mainly through “Unacademy”.
The game changer – “Unacademy”
When Saini was in the 2nd year of his MBBS, a friend Gaurav Munjal approached him with the idea of a venture to support students in their learning and professional career. That idea sooner consummated in “Unacademy”, with two other founding members, Hemesh Singh and Sachin Gupta.
An online educational platform, “Unacademy”, offers the opportunity to learn free of cost to the students of all courses and particularly to the ones who are preparing for the various job-oriented exams. The non-profit initiative provides free reference material to students through its website. The online organization also has a Youtube channel where video tutorials are shared. The tutorials and videos involve many educators who are experts in their fields. At present, the YouTube channel of Unacademy has more than a thousand videos and millions of followers. With time, Unacademy is reaching more people.
This educational channel is seen as a great platform for the students coming from the poor background, who cannot afford highly expensive coaching classes or materials required to prepare for such competitive exams. Almost all main subjects like Geography, Physics, History, Politics, Arts, Environment, Ecology, Biodiversity, etc. are covered by Unacademy. Currently, the lessons are conducted in English, but Saini is planning to provide them in other Indian languages. The success of the enterprise is remarkable as it was reported that, in 2015, ten beneficiaries of Saini’s program passed civil services exam.
A Hope
Pathetic financial conditions of families have always been a barrier to the education of many ambitious boys and girls. A brilliant student leaving his studies midway to support his low-income family is a common sight in our country. But even after so many years, we have failed to bring a solution to this major issue. However, everybody does not succumb to circumstances, and here we have Dr. Roman Saini who is standing for a greater cause. With the plight of lakhs of disadvantaged individuals in mind, a 25-year youngster is now showing the way to this generation that life is not only about getting settled and living in luxury but also to lend a hand to improve and progress the society you are placed in.
Roman Saini passed his pre-medical exam at 16 and went on to become a junior resident doctor, that too in one of the country’s best institutes, AIIMS. At 22, he was appointed as a civil service officer, a position that is seen as a most influential one. He could have carried on with his promising career. But, unlike many of us, Saini chose to do something that would affect a greater number of people and especially the youth of the country. With the support of some friends, he started an e-education site and now he is serving the community through his entrepreneurial endeavors.
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