The students and teachers of SIES Dr APJ Abdul Kalam English High School at Ghatkopar (W) have set a remarkable example of empathy. Within two weeks of their top student Advait Ramane, 16, being diagnosed with Guillain-Barre (GB) syndrome, an autoimmune disorder, necessitating immunoglobulin shots of Rs 18,000 each, and out of the reach of his lower middle-class parents, the school has pooled together a substantial amount for his treatment.

On June 7, while Advait's entire school was celebrating his top score of 95.20 per cent in the SSC exams, the boy was being rushed to the ICU of Shantiniketan Multi-speciality Hospital in Ghatkopar. An ache in his legs that he had been complaining about all week turned into an unbearable pain, making him unable to even stand. Several tests later, his parents were handed the mind-numbing diagnosis — Advait had GB syndrome, a rare but serious disorder in which the immune system attacks healthy nerve cells in the peripheral nervous system and eventually causes paralysis.