From Labourer To Software Engineer In Europe, This Kerala Boy's Story Is As Inspiring As It Gets
Binesh Balan from Kerala started doing manual jobs when he was young in his native Kolichal in Kasaragod, to overcome poverty. Belonging to the Mavilan tribal community, he has had the most inspiring journey, from Kerala to Europe. © TNIE Now, the 29-year-old has developed an open banking software as a researcher at the University of Amsterdam in The Netherlands.
Overcoming all the tough situations life threw at him, he made his dreams come true and it was all because of his sheer perseverance and hard work. Talking to The New Indian Express, he said, "From language, college admission, and getting a scholarship, there was no shortage of obstacles. But I was able to overcome the hurdles with the help of a few enlightened minds." © Reddif He went on, "Right from my early years, I had a deep passion for computers and used to do programming. Hence I thought of startups. Last year, with the help of a colleague from Idukki I started working on a banking software which will cater to future generations. Now, it has been fully developed as an open banking software. The Fintech software will be called Reciprocity exchange or Rexchange."
Basically, what sets Rexchange apart is that it stores money value not in Indian Rupees but in a digital value called Reciprocity or Rv. The account which keeps Rv is known as the Coop Bank Account Number (CBAN) and can store high denomination currency values like euro, dollar, and pound and can also be withdrawn in Indian Rupees. © University of Amsterdam Talking about his app, he said, "The app was launched a week ago and already 69 people have downloaded it. The value of Rv is decided by Live Rexchange Rate (LRR). LRR will rise as per the rise in the number of CBAN accounts."
His love for computers started off early when he used to travel 8kms to the nearest town of Rajapuram to play video games at an internet cafe when he was in class fourth. Three years later, he learned to develop basic programme language. © Pexels He said, "Though I managed to secure a pass in only one or two subjects in high school, I was an expert in computers. Even our teachers used to consult me."
He was able to go to the UK under a central government scholarship to study at the University of Sussex after completing his degree in Development Economics and obtaining an MBA. About his time in the UK, he said, "I had to work as a cleaning boy from 4 am to 8 am in Sussex since the scholarship amount did not suffice." © University of Sussex Lastly, he had an extremely important point to make - "The approach of the Kerala civil society, state government, and NGOs towards tribal communities is deplorable. The general view is that tribals should learn from the other ‘civilized’ communities. But in my view, it was just the opposite."
Well, he's the living example of that. Kudos to this man and everything he's managed to achieve. Source - The New Indian Express
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