PARAUKH : Diwali has arrived much in advance for this small village in Derapur tehsil of Kanpur Dehat district. Paraukh, the native village of Ramnath Kovind , erupted in joy and celebration as news spread that NDA had declared him as its presidential nominee. Sweets were distributed amid the chanting of songs in praise of PM Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and Kovind. Overjoyed villagers rushed out of their houses with harmoniums and dholaks and started singing from a podium next to Kovind's ancestral house."Our village's son has been chosen as a nominee for the presidential elections. The prayers and celebrations will continue till the results are out and he is declared President of India," Kovind's childhood friend Jaswant Singh told TOI, adding, "Our small village will now find a place on the world map." Jaswant recalled that Kovind was very sharp in studies. "We used to go to school together which was some 6 km from our village. Those days, the teachers were very strict and often students were beaten up for not paying attention. But Ramnath was never scolded as he was a meritorious student," said Jaswant.Rajkishore Singh, who was a year senior to Kovind in the village school, said that despite his stature, Kovind is easily accessible, simple, humble and straightforward. "After becoming the governor, he came to the village once and met all of us. He has even gifted his ancestral house to the village which is now being used as a community hall to hold small functions," he said. Kovind's distant nephew Anil Kumar said nobody from his immediate family lives here now. Pushpa Devi, an aanganwadi worker whose father was Kovind's classmate, said that in 2002 when he became a Rajya Sabha member, the village started witnessing development. "Despite reaching such stature, he does not have a single property in his name in Paraukh village," she said.Vinod Singh Chauhan, who lives next to Kovind's ancestral house, said the latter's father Maiku Lal was a priest in an ancient temple in the village. "There was a time when his father could not afford even his school fee," said a villager elder.

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