Night watchman at Hyderabad’s Osmania University, 31-year-old lands 3 govt teaching jobs at once
Praveen's story is that of patience, perseverance, hard work and determination to bring his family out of poverty.
4 min read
Osmania University felicitated Praveen Kumar for his achievement. (Photo: OU)A night watchman at Osmania University for the last five years, Golle Praveen Kumar of Telangana’s Mancherial district will now start a career as a government teacher. In the ongoing recruitment, the thirty-one-year-old has just secured not one but three government jobs in the last ten days and stands tall as an inspiration to lakhs of unemployed youngsters in the state.
Praveen’s story is that of patience, perseverance, hard work and determination to bring his family out of poverty. Growing up amid financial constraints while his father Peddulu, a mason, and mother Posamma, a beedi roller, struggled to make ends meet, Praveen was determined to pursue higher education after securing a BCom degree back in his hometown Jannaram. It is this urge to come out of poverty that, he says, drove him to achieve his dreams.
Speaking to indianexpress.com, Praveen says he kept aside about 10 hours a day to prepare and his night watchman job (as an outsourced employee) helped him peacefully read and revise the topics. The night job between 6 pm and 8 am not only let him earn a living to cover his expenses but also provided the space and peace to pursue his goal. “Going to my job every evening was like going to a reading hall for me.”
Praveen secured three government positions – of a trained graduate teacher (TGT), a postgraduate teacher (PGT) and a junior lecturer (JL).
Praveen had been a student of Osmania University and completed M.Com, B.Ed and M.Ed between 2013 and 2019, before taking up the job of a night watchman at the varsity’s Educational MultiMedia Research Center (EMRC) for Rs 9,000 a month. “I took up the job for money as I decided to prepare for government exams. I was staying with friends at the university hostels as a non-boarder, which is not legally allowed, and yet I could not send anything back home then. What kept me going was my family’s support and urge to overcome our financial difficulties,” Praveen adds.
Having secured three government positions, that of a trained graduate teacher (TGT), a postgraduate teacher (PGT) and a junior lecturer (JL) through the recruitment process conducted by the Telangana Residential Educational Institutions Recruitment Board (TREIRB) last August, Praveen recalls that it was his patience that paid off more than preparations.
In 2018, he appeared for the District Selection Committee (DSC) exam – another government recruitment exam for teaching positions – and fell short by half a mark. “It was difficult but I knew I could clear in my next attempt. But I had to wait till 2023 for the next job notification to be issued by the government. These notifications are issued only once in four or five years and that is why patience is most important,” he explains.
His love for teaching is also something he developed during this journey. “I had appeared for the Group-2 exam in 2017 but failed. It was then I realised my interest in teaching students as a career,” he adds.
From a watchman’s job that paid him Rs 9,000 a month, Praveen will now as a junior lecturer draw a monthly salary of Rs 54,220 – Rs 1,33,630. Before joining the new job next academic year, he says, he would spend time with family and friends back home with a sense of achievement and gratitude.
Asked for his message to lakhs of youngsters who dream of a government job and dedicate several years of their lives, Praveen says it is important to take inspiration from one’s family and financial background, have patience and study without losing focus.
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