Born at just six months into pregnancy and weighing only 680 grams, Maria Kripa Michael began her life fighting for survival. Years later, the young student has turned that difficult beginning into an inspiring academic achievement by scoring a perfect 1200 out of 1200 in the Kerala Plus Two examinations.
Maria, a humanities student at Sacred Heart HSS, achieved the remarkable feat despite living with more than 40 per cent visual impairment. She appeared for the examinations with the support of a scribe and secured full marks, making her achievement a powerful story of resilience, determination and courage.
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Maria is the younger daughter of Michael Antony, who works in the publishing sector in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, and Sheela Michael.
She was born unexpectedly during a routine hospital visit when her mother was just six months pregnant. Her middle name “Kripa,” meaning divine grace in Malayalam, reflects the extraordinary journey she has undergone since birth. Due to her extreme prematurity, Maria spent more than a year under intensive medical care at Lakshmi Hospital.
While she overcame several medical challenges during childhood, her visual impairment continues to remain a major hurdle. Despite this, Maria pursued her studies with determination and discipline, eventually emerging as one of the state’s top-performing students.
Maria now hopes to continue her academic journey by pursuing higher studies in psychology, with her inspiring success story standing as a symbol of perseverance and hope for many students facing challenges in life.
