India Positive: Aanchal Gangwal's father is a tea seller in MP. And she has just joined IAF as an officer!

In our lifetime, many of us face obstacles but only a few of us have the courage and determination to face them head-on and pass with flying colours. 24-year-old Aanchal Gangwal, a tea-seller’s daughter from MP, who got accepted into IAF (Indian Air Force) as a Flying Officer, did precisely that.
Coming from a humble background, Aanchal’s journey was not an easy one as there were times when her father struggled to make ends meet and pay her education fees.

"Her commissioning was a proud moment for our family, but we could not make it (to the Air Force Academy at Dundigal) to see her due to the coronavirus-induced restrictions," her father Suresh Gangwal, who works as a tea seller at a bus stand in Neemuch district, told PTI.

Aanchal got the inspiration to join the IAF after witnessing the bravery of personnel during the 2013 Kedarnath tragedy.

A bright student, who also happens to be a basketball player, collected information from book stalls on how she could get into the defence force and started preparations in that direction.

However, Aanchal’s father, too, faced several challenges to make his daughter’s dream come true.

"One can understand my financial condition. At times, I faced problems in depositing her school or college fee. I had to borrow money from others on many occasions to deposit the fee. Sometimes I had to pretend to be out of town to delay fees deposition,” said Suresh Gangwal, Aanchal’s father.

Aanchal also happened to earn the praise of Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, who sent out a tweet congratulating the young warrior.

रौशन थी धरती तुझसे, अब रौशन होगा आसमां भी।दुआओं पर परवाज करो, रौशन कर दो जहां भी। अंधेरों को चीरकर फिर एक बेटी '… https://t.co/IpQ48txnv3— Shivraj Singh Chouhan (@ChouhanShivraj) 1592814808000(With inputs from PTI)