Chapter 11: Final Year, First Steps
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The final year of engineering began with a paradox.
Aditya felt both a veteran and a beginner.
Veteran, because he'd seen labs, led projects, spoken at summits, and traveled continents.
Beginner, because the future stretched ahead—wide, uncertain, daunting.
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Back on campus, things were both familiar and strange. The same mess food. The same chai at 2 AM. The same professor whose lectures felt like lullabies.
But everything felt different too. People talked of placements. GRE scores. CAT forms. UPSC dreams. Startup pitches. Everyone was moving. Fast.
Aditya watched. Listened.
And chose to pause.
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He took time to reflect.
What did he want?
Not just a job. Not just a degree.
He wanted impact.
He wanted to build something that outlived him.
But to do that, he needed clarity.
So he returned to his basics.
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He resumed *Project KrishiNet*, this time expanding its scope into a capstone project.
With new team members and refined technology, the goal was clear: develop an open-source, DIY irrigation kit that any farmer in rural India—or Africa—could build for under Rs. 2000.
He also began mentoring juniors, guiding them on design thinking, sustainable engineering, and how to survive a coding breakdown at 3 in the morning.
To them, he was *Aditya bhaiyya*, the senior who knew how to solder circuits and solve heartbreaks with equal patience.
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Meanwhile, Isha had begun applying to postgraduate programs in Europe. Architecture and sustainable urban design.
They didn't talk every day, but when they did, it was raw, real, and reassuring.
"We're growing," she said one night.
"Together?" he asked.
"Parallel," she replied.
It wasn't the answer he wanted. But it was honest. And enough—for now.
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The placement season loomed.
Friends around him began preparing—mock interviews, aptitude tests, resume polishing.
Aditya prepared too. But he was selective.
He didn't want just a high-paying job. He wanted a platform.
Something that merged his tech skills with his passion for social impact.
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Then came the interview that changed everything.
SELTech Global, a social enterprise focused on clean energy and smart agriculture solutions, was looking for innovation associates. The role involved traveling to rural regions, designing field solutions, collaborating with global experts, and eventually leading ground-level deployments.
It was perfect.
The interview was intense. Technical rounds. Case studies. Ethical dilemmas.
At the end, the recruiter asked, "Why do you want this job?"
Aditya answered without rehearsal:
"Because my story began in a village. And if it ends in boardrooms, something went wrong."
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A week later, the offer letter arrived.
It wasn't the highest-paying offer.
But it was the most meaningful.
He accepted.
His classmates cheered. His professors nodded in approval.
Baba cried silently and fed sweets to the entire mohalla.
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As final semester began, Aditya felt lighter.
He started running in the mornings.
Wrote poetry at night.
Watched the sunrise more often.
He and his friends created a time capsule—letters, trinkets, memories—to be opened ten years later.
They painted the hostel wall with their batch slogan: *"Engineered to Dream."*
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On the last day of college, he stood in the same classroom where four years ago, a nervous boy had once stumbled during his first presentation.
He stood taller now.
Not because he had all the answers.
But because he'd learned how to ask better questions.
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Before leaving, he sat one last time at his favorite spot—the old bench near the library, under the gulmohar tree.
He looked around.
The buildings. The birds. The breeze.
And he whispered to himself:
"Goodbye, not forever. Only till the next beginning."
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Aditya's journey as a student was ending.
But the journey of a changemaker was just beginning.