Nalini Kr. Mazumder, 63, retired from his nearly three-decade-long teaching career at the Bheuwa Government Senior Basic School at Chhamaria Satra in Assam’s Kamrup district in 2020. Mazumder’s life journey highlights how timely planning and positive actions helped him comfortably achieve his long-term financial goals. Mazumder was consistent at whatever he was doing with his teacher’s salary—buying land, building a home, and laying the foundation of another house for rental income, even though it took him many years to complete these tasks. Interestingly, he began taking all these steps while still on the job, highlighting his ability to think ahead and plan wisely. Besides these long-term projects, Mazumder shouldered his family’s everyday expenses, including children’s education.

Today, the sexagenarian lives in a magnificent seven-room house overlooking a sprawling farm dotted with trees in Chhamaria with his wife, Dulu Moni, 52, and two unmarried children: son Abinash, 28, and daughter Rakhi, 25. Abinash works as a programme manager at a civil society organisation called “Sanjog”, which is headquartered in the adjoining Nalbari district, and Rakhi, 25, practises law in the session court and high court in Guwahati, some 63 km from Chhamaria. She is currently preparing for the Assam Judicial Service examination.

When It All Began

Mazumder took a teaching job at Bheuwa Government Senior Basic School in 1993. He taught geography, social science, and English grammar up to sixth standard. After working hours, he would give free tuition classes to poor students in the area and distribute free learning materials and notes to B.Ed aspirants. Under his guidance, three students from the Boko College of Education in Chhamaria cleared the B.Ed exam. His commitment to his job, which he considered a social service, was extraordinary and reflected in his zeal to attend all classes despite his difficult circumstances when commuting to the office due to bad roads stretching up to 10 km from home to school in the late 90s. He would walk the entire stretch when cycling was impossible during bad weather. Says Mazumder, “The road conditions were worst back then; I rode the cycle and even walked 10 km to take my classes without taking any leave or making excuses.”

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Mazumder lived an active social life. He was also an actor and a sportsman. In his youth, he played football and volleyball for a local club. He even played in district-level tournaments. After retirement, he devotes most of his time to social work. Currently, he is constructing a 4-room house for rent, which will help him supplement his income. Mazumder was honoured with

the Best Teacher Award from Bheuwa Government Senior Basic School and felicitated by the Chhamaria Youth Club, recognising his contribution to teaching.

Responsibilities For The Family

Mazumder supported his children’s decision regarding their education. He gave them all the freedom to choose their career and supported them every step of the way. He took loans from private lenders to fulfil his children’s education dream. Both the children are currently unmarried. Some proposals for his daughter came, but he refused as she is preparing for the Assam Judicial Service (AJS) examination besides practising law. Regarding personal finance, Mazumder has not made any notable investments in the market except for fixed deposits (FDs), the employees’ provident fund (EPF), and properties for rental income. He also invested in a tea shop. He has repaid all the outstanding loans before retirement. Mazumder also took a life insurance cover in 2015, for which he pays a monthly premium of Rs 2,000.

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Post-Retirement Life

Says Mazumder: “Both my children are supportive not only financially but also in other family aspects. They divided among themselves some of the monthly expenses of the house like electricity bill, mobile recharge, TV charge, medical bills, etc.”

Mazumder receives a monthly pension of Rs 33,000 in addition to his rental income of Rs 3,000 and income from fishery and agriculture businesses on his six bighas of land, which generates around Rs 60,000 annually. He adds, “I plan to invest in other local businesses if the situation permits in the future to increase the cash inflow.”

In conclusion, Mazumder’s success highlights the importance of planning wisely and ahead of time. He has shown that no matter how big the targets are, small steps at a time and breaking down large goals into smaller, more manageable tasks can help achieve complex and challenging missions.