Demise of an Epoch: Farewell to Dear Shambu Sir

- Birendra Prasad Shrestha


"Shambhu sir is taken to hospital", my childhood friend Pushpa said to me. I was standing at a motorcycle workshop when I heard it. I thought it was probably because of low blood pressure he might have been taken for regular. It was the evening of Saturday 27th Ashadh.
"Shambhu sir is no more", a phone call from a friend informed me. I was having tea at home at that time just after 15 minutes Pushpa talked of Shambhu sir being taken to hospital. The person said that he was at Sushma Koirala Memorial Hospital.
"Is the message related to Shambhu sir true?" I called a friend living nearby. He confirmed.
When I reached the hospital, there were hundreds of sir's students outside the hospital. All sad and making calls and posting it to their facebook. I thought of my school days when beloved teacher Shambhu sir taught us Optional Maths. Then the pictures of him as the Principal of the ten plus two wing of Shree Bhagyodaya Secondary School stood in front me. Our loved campus chief, our parent lying motionless under the white shroud … end of an epoch in the history of the higher education in Shankharapur … I thought.
The anecdote above is about Mr. Shambhu Das Shrestha's last moments. He was born in the year 2000 B.S. (but its 2002 in his citizenship) in a family of businessman. He was the beloved son of Mr. Amir Das Shrestha and Mrs. Bhakti Devi Shrestha. He was married to Tulsi Shrestha, had five daughters and a son. He studied science in the certificate level. Later on he post graduated in Nepal Bhasha. He loved Nepal Bhasha language and literature. He used to tell me, "Be ware of Bhasha Premis".
He started teaching at Shree Bhagyodaya Secondary School from 2021 BS. Before his teaching career, he wanted to join army. He was appointed as the Second Lieutenant in the then Royal Nepalese Army. His parents did not allow him to join the army. Thus he started teaching and working at his shop. He taught as a primary teacher, then the lower secondary teacher, and then as the secondary teacher. He became the first Principal of 10 + 2 wing of Shree Bhagyodaya Secondary School in 2054 BS, served as the principal for the eight years, leaded the secondary level wing of the school as the headteacher from 2060 BS to 2062 BS. The apex of his teaching career started in the year 2059 BS with Bhagyodaya Campus. He volunteered as the campus chief for more than ten years.
The contribution Shambhu sir made was paid by the campus management committee after about ten years of his altruistic service to the tertiary level education. The management committee managed to arrange the minimal pay to him as a respect to his selfless service to the campus.
"Shambhu sir is very good at table work", a colleague and close acquaintance remembers how devotedly he worked.
Shambhu sir is the encyclopedia of Bhagyoday, the school and the campus. Not only that a living legend of the education of our country. His untimely demise is a great loss to the higher education in Shankharapur.
(Birendra Prasad Shrestha, Shambhu sir's student )

- Birendra Prasad Shrestha