“I love working for myself. Every day I open my shop and stand with pride, looking at my sign board and the business I’ve created – It’s hard to believe it’s mine! See, I was a high school dropout – as an only son I felt a huge pressure to help my parents in some way. I dropped out so that I could get a job and support them, but it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. With no qualifications or skills, I was turned away at every door. By the grace of God I found out about SEDI and was excited to see a course in 2 and 3 Wheeler Repair – I always loved tinkering with bikes.

On completing the course, I got a job in a local service centre, but somehow I never liked the idea of working for others. I wanted to work for myself, and call the shots. So I rented a small shop, and ‘N Pal Motors’ was born. At first I was only able to earn about Rs.15000 per month, but slowly my customer base grew – I worked hard and am a friendly type of bloke. Today I bring home Rs.30, 000 per month, employ 3 other mechanics and have the freedom to balance business and family.” - Naba Kumar Pal, Sankrail, West Bengal.