Mrs. Aangur Baba Joshi

She is handing a prize to students of our school (from our school file)

Our living hero's name is Mrs. Aangur Baba Joshi. She was born in 1932 August 15th at Dili Bazar (very popular city of Nepal) as a daughter of father, Late Mr. Pitamber Prasad Panta, and Mother, Late Mrs. Deep Kumari Panta. Her childhood was happy. Her life was affected totally by the social and cultural environment at home. In her childhood she used to be quiet all the time and also used to be unhealthy. She was married with Late Dr. Bal Ram Joshi at the age of eleven. She has one son and two daughters named Kiran (Son), Prava and Jyoti (Daughters). Her married life was very successful.

She started her career as principal in Padma Kanya College, the first woman's college of Nepal, from 1953 AD to 1973 B.S. She is in fact, the first woman in Nepal to work as a principal. Most of the girls and women of Nepal are uneducated. Parents and people of society think that since girls get married one day, they need not get educated. She is our hero because she has worked so hard to promote girl's and women's education in Nepal. She is also the founding president of Taragaon Village Development Committee, a pioneer social organization working to promote tourism in Nepal.

She had been engaged with many Governmental as well as Non-Governmental Organizations. Especially she had contributed her life in the education sector for the progress of education in Nepal. She had also contributed her life in lecturing. Our hero lived from 15th August 1932 A.D. and she is all the more alive now, even at the age of 74. She had got a very good opportunity for education. Her first teacher was her own father. She learned English, Hindi, Nepali, Sanskrit, etc. languages from him. By her hard labour on her studies, she completed I.A. in 1950 B.S., B.A. in 1952 B.S. from Banaras and she completed B.L., M.A., (in political science) from Patana University of India and B.L from Oxford University and Bar-at-law from Middle Temple of London. She has been awarded various prestigious medals such as: Gorkha Dakshin Bahu, II class, Trishakti Patta III class, Mahendra Vidya Bhushan I Class and so on.

She is also known as the first Nepali woman to go abroad. In 1957 she went to Oxford University in England to forward her study. When she arrived there she introduced herself as a Hindu woman of the Hindu country Nepal. But unfortunately no one knew her and her country. In a sad mood she said that she was the daughter of the country Nepal where the world's highest peak, Mt. Everest, lies and where brave Gorkhalis were born. After this introduction they knew her as a daughter of the motherland Nepal.

This event in her life led her to establish Taragaon Village Development Committee in Nepal, so as to introduce Nepal and its cultural heritage and natural resources to the world. It has two objectives: the first is to promote tourism industry of Nepal by establishing hotels, resorts that reflect culture and tradition of Nepal. The second is to do social work through the profit generated by the business. This project has been working to empower the women of rural areas of Nepal and also to provide education to poor children of Nepal.

There must be the hand of someone for the success of someone. She says that her parents provided her good upbringing. Her husband always encouraged her to develop a career and supported her in every step; he himself was a very renowned scientist of Nepal. She is equally inspired by Khaptad Baba, a famous sage of Nepal, who has helped her to lead a spiritual life.

"Woman of Great Courage" Artwork by SERVICE

She is our hero not only because of her deeds, as we discussed above, but her courageous fight with cancer. She suffered from cancer of the mouth almost 8 years ago. But she continuously fought it with determination and her faith in God. Despite suffering from such a dangerous disease, she has not given up. Her life is inspiring to everyone who wishes to overcome difficulties in their life.

She is our hero because she has dedicated her whole life for service. She is such a great person. But she always treats everyone equally. She has even come to our school. We have met her several times. Every time we meet her, she loves us and inspires us. She says, "Always think positive, always believe in God." She is also our hero because she has won over even the dangerous disease cancer. Even though suffering from such a terrible disease, she has not stopped her service to her country and people.

Her Message to the Children of the World:
The main message of her to the people, especially children of the whole world, is "Live for others." Be the master of your mind and not a slave. You must try to be expert at least in one sector. You have to control your mind and your heart by yourself. Always be happy. Happiness is the way to be successful in life. She also says that we should never be unhappy even if we fail, we should keep on trying. To her, "Life is full of joy and sorrow", our life is created for others too. The most perfect way of living is by serving others. If we serve anyone in the way of our life then the value of life increases and then our life becomes meaningful. She says that we should always follow our heart, we should listen to it. In fact wealth, power, and prestige are not that important. Positive attitude is our real wealth. One who thinks positively is always happy, one who thinks negatively is always sad. She also says that we should never be afraid of criticism; it is a great opportunity to reform ourselves.