Shazia Masood
Every single person on this earth has been created with special abilities, what he/she has to do is to know about that ability and to bring that ability into work. No matter how difficult or how hard it is, surely the day will come when your ability will enlighten you and your society. Develop strong confidence in yourself and have faith in your abilities.
Tariq Ahmad, who is from Shangus Anantnag is suffering from retinitis pigmentosa due to which his back wall of the eye (retina) is completely damaged and is unable to see the world. No doubt blindness took away his vision but not his dreams .”Retinitis pigmentosa is a rare, inherited degenerative eye disease that causes severe vision impairment,” says a local doctor.
“In my 10th class I completely lost my vision and I was unable to read and write and I left my school, ” he says .”For three years I was at home and being depressed and scared made me suffocate.”
As he was passionate to educate himself, he completed his 12th class studies and then he completed his bachelor’s from Boys degree college Khanabal. “I was recording the lectures in a tape recorder and I was listening to them again and again “.
After that, he completed his post-graduation in history from Kashmir University. Moreover, he has qualified the National Eligibility Test (NET), State Eligibility Test (SET) and has completed Ph.d. “I qualified all these competitive examinations without any reservation,” he says.
Tariq Ahmad has changed his disability and weakness in his identity. He is also a member of the Humanity Welfare Organisation and his main motto is to make the disabled people as a part of the society. “Government should collect data about disabled persons in Kashmir, there should be more schools for them, there should be rehabilitation centers and skilled centers so that they will live their lives without any help from others,” he says.
Currently, he is an assistant professor in Government Degree College Uttersoo and is guiding hundreds of students and has changed the perception of many people.
“Life is all about struggle, don’t ever be ashamed of struggling for the things you want in life,” says Tariq Ahmad.