At 17, when most girls of her age were set to go to college for higher studies, she got married. But Sarala Bastian did not wish to just be confined to her house. She wanted to do something on her own. She wanted to be independent and carve out an identify for herself.

Sharad Mirani, a 14-year-old from Ahmedabad has won the maiden bronze medal in the global scientific competition, International Earth Science Olympiads (IESO) in Taiwan.