When Pune Mothers Study Too: SWaCH Waste Picker Women Pass 10th Standard
When Pune Mothers Study Too: SWaCH Waste Picker Women Pass 10th Standard
Pune, May 9, 2026: Last May, the organisation screened the film Aata Thambaycha Naay, a story of sanitation workers overcoming all obstacles to pass 10th standard. After watching it, Varsha decided that this year, she would take the exam and pass.
As a single mother of two, Varsha attended night school to prepare for her 10th standard. Right until the last moment, even as she worried whether she could sit for the exam due to missing documents, Varsha persisted. She scored 46% and fulfilled her dream.
Name: Varsha Oval
Score: 46%
Jyoti Ashok Pandit collects waste door-to-door in a slum near SRPF, Wanawadi. She had studied only until 7th standard before family responsibilities forced her to leave school 27 years ago.
But her dream was always for her children to succeed, to reach high positions and join armed services. Her determination paid off: her daughter Shweta joined the Indian Navy, and her two sons are preparing for police and army recruitment.
This year, Shweta asked her mother to do something for herself, to sit for her 10th exam. With Shweta’s help filling all forms and documents, Jyoti enrolled at Masoom’s night school through Kagad, Kach, Patra Kashtakari Panchayat and SWaCH.
The film Aata Thambaycha Naay inspired her deeply.
Name: Jyoti Pandit
Score: 41%
“My routine was waste collection in the morning, school in the evening,” Jyoti recalls. “My husband and children supported me completely. Before I left for night school, I would finish all the household work so I could focus on studies.”
“My children’s support made this possible,” she says. “And I will keep working while I study further.”
Mother and Son: Learning Together, Succeeding Together
Mother: Archana Ghodke
Score: 60%
Son: Yash Ghodke
Score: 54%
With determination and a love for learning, this mother-son duo prepared for 10th together and both passed.
Archana Vikas Ghodke collects waste in the SRPF, Wanawadi area. 25 years ago, she studied only until 9th standard before family responsibilities took over her life.
This year, as she helped her son Yash prepare for his 10th exam, something shifted. Archana decided to take the exam too. With encouragement from Kagad, Kach, Patra Kashtakari Panchayat and SWaCH, she enrolled in Masoom’s night school. Working in the mornings, studying at night, Archana scored 60%. Her son Yash scored 54%, truly living up to his name.
Yash explains: “While I studied, if Mom had questions, I’d help her. We didn’t take any coaching. We studied at home together. When Mom came back from work, she’d go to night school, and when she returned, she’d teach me what she learned. That made both of us want to study more.”
He adds with a smile: “Sometimes I’d fall asleep, but Mom would keep studying. That’s probably why she scored higher than me.”
