Thrissur/Kasaragod: Determined to participate despite her illness, Siya Fathima earned her ‘first A grade’ for her own resolve. The next one for those who supported her, and the third one for Minister V Sivankutty who firmly instructed the officials to adjust the rules when she expressed sadness over not being able to participate in the competition. Finally, Siya bagged the real A grade, announced on Saturday, for an Arabic poster she had prepared from her home at Padanna in Kasaragod.

Siya Fathima is a student at VKEPK HMM RV HSS, Padanna. She had eagerly wanted to participate in the Arabic poster writing competition of Kerala State School Kalolsavam held in Thrissur. However, her desire was initially blocked by the doctors due to her vasculitis, a condition causing blood clots. The tenth-standard student sent a heartfelt message to Minister V Sivankutty requesting permission to participate. Showing compassion beyond the competition rules, the Minister facilitated a video conferencing option for Siya to compete.

Ministers Sivankutty and Rajan, watched the event live from Thrissur. Despite severe pain, Siya wrote and drew with complete confidence and joy. When the results were announced, she earned an A grade.

The competition topic was ‘Book Fair’, lasting half an hour with 14 participants in total. In Thrissur, Public Education Director N S K Umesh registered Siya with a code number to ensure her participation.