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A short man who lived tall: Moga bids adieu to its 2.9-foot-tall, wheelchair-bound math teacher Gobind ‘Veerji’
“Not a single student or any other person ever made fun of my short appearance. My short hands and legs never discouraged me from taking classes,” Gobind 'Veerji' had told The Indian Express in an interview.
For over 37 years, he taught mathematics at his home without missing a class, becoming a paradigm for many on how to live and succeed despite all odds. (Express Photo)
Gobind Lal — fondly called ‘Gobind Veerji’ in Moga — a 2 feet and 9 inches tall, wheelchair-bound mathematics teacher, whose home classes required an advance booking, passed away late on Monday after living a life taller than his physical stature. He was 59.
Gobind Veerji, a household name in Moga, remained confined to a wheelchair his entire life due to a medical condition that restricted his height and movement since birth. However, for over 37 years, he taught mathematics at his home without missing a class, becoming a paradigm for many on how to live and succeed despite all odds.
“In teaching, I find a reason for being,” Gobind had told The Indian Express in an interview published on Teachers’ Day in 2015. “I love this town (Moga). Here, people have clean hearts. No student or anyone else has ever made fun of my short stature. My short hands and legs never discouraged me from taking classes. I do not want any other national or international recognition.” “They even told me to stop teaching because it would hurt my back, but it was not possible. Teaching is my soul. This is the only reason why I did not give up despite 90 per cent disability,” he had said.
Gobind Veerji, a household name in Moga, remained confined to a wheelchair his entire life due to a medical condition that restricted his height and movement since birth. (Express Photo)
Despite doctors repeatedly telling him to cut his long teaching hours short and warning that it would further weaken his muscles, Gobind said he never did so.
Speaking with The Indian Express, his younger brother Sunil Kumar Kukreja said that around six months ago, Gobind had suffered a heart attack. “Due to his short height and body structure, doctors had said that surgery wasn’t possible; only medicines could help. Last week, he suffered another heart attack. We admitted him to Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) in Ludhiana, where he passed away late on Monday, following a heart failure. His void will never be filled, but we are proud of him because, despite the challenges he faced since his birth, he lived a life that became immortal. He will live in the hearts of his students forever.”
Kukreja added that Gobind had been teaching at least 60-70 students daily until he became unwell. “He left teaching just a month ago when he got really unwell. He spent his entire life teaching maths to his students, whom he considered family. Teacher’s Day would feel like a festival at our home. His old students would also visit with greeting cards, cakes and flowers. That’s what he earned.”
Gobind’s love for teaching began in Class X when he taught mathematics to colleagues who passed the subject with flying colours. (Express Photo)
Rina Singla, his ex-student and now a maths teacher with the Punjab Education Department, said, “I had joined his classes in Class XI after scoring very poorly in maths, but he encouraged me not to give up. For students like me, he was a big inspiration. He is the inspiration behind my decision to be a maths teacher. Despite being restricted to a wheelchair and his unique body structure, he was always full of life and confidence. He had made a special vehicle for himself, suitable for his height. He would not depend on anyone to take him out.”
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Gobind’s love for teaching began in Class X when he taught mathematics to colleagues who passed the subject with flying colours. Thereon, he never looked back.
Several schools offered him a job, but he preferred teaching students at his home, given his condition. Adopting technology helped him, and he started preparing notes on LED screens and tablets. Gobind would become nostalgic, talking about his childhood when his siblings would carry him to school.
Gobind would become nostalgic, talking about his childhood when his siblings would carry him to school. (Express Photo)
His physical condition created a minor hurdle — only once —when he applied for an undergraduate course. “Colleges were ready to admit me. But they said that it would be risky for me to do physics and chemistry practicals. They told me to join a BA (Bachelor’s in Arts) course. Then I decided not to join college. I did my BA in mathematics through correspondence from Panjab University. I wanted to prove that nothing is impossible,” Gobind had told this reporter in the interview.
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