Age is just a number, and you are never too late to learn. A 104-year-old woman from Kerala has perfectly exemplified this.
Named Kuttiyama, the woman has amazed the entire world by scoring 89 out of 100 in a literacy exam held by the state. Termed as “Saksharatha”, the test was conducted in the Ayarkunnam panchayat of Kottayam.
Earlier the woman could still somehow read, but she had never attended school and could not write. With the help of Saksharatha Prerak Rehna, she learned how to write by attending classes that were held each morning and evening at her home.
With this, now Kuttiayamma has become eligible to write the class 4 exam.
The elderly woman has difficulty in hearing due to age and so at the start of the exam, she reminded the invigilators to speak loudly so that she would not miss anything.
Her feat was shared by Kerala’s Minister for Education and Labour, V Sivankutty, who took to Twitter to share Kuttiyamma’s achievement with the world.
104-year-old Kuttiyamma from Kottayam has scored 89/100 in the Kerala State Literacy Mission’s test. Age is no barrier to enter the world of knowledge. With utmost respect and love, I wish Kuttiyamma and all other new learners the best. #Literacy pic.twitter.com/pB5Fj9LYd9
— V. Sivankutty (@VSivankuttyCPIM) November 12, 2021
Netizens drew inspiration from the woman’s achievement.
Wow wow !! What a joy in her face … hats off to Kuttiyamma ! May she be blessed with another 100 years to inspire many generations ! 🙏🏻
— Bala (@bmkruze) November 15, 2021
Thanks for motivating me to pursue further studies
— Mohammed Harees (@Mohamme45691821) November 13, 2021
Hats off to you Amma 🙏🙏🙏🙏
— Deepu Prasanth (@deepuprasant) November 15, 2021
In the recent past, another 100-year-old woman named Bhageerathi Amma and 96-year-old Karthiyayini Amma from Kerala were jointly selected for the Nari Shakti Puraskar for 2019 by the Central government for their exceptional contribution towards women’s empowerment as they had scored exceptionally well in the Kerala Literacy Mission test. Prior to them, Karthiyani Amma from Alappuzha had scored 98 out of 100 in “Akshra Laksham“, a flagship program of the Kerala State Literacy Mission Authority, in October 2018.