Retired English teacher Subodh Chandra Sarker, father of Dhaka Tribune’s News Editor Probir Kumar Sarker, has died at the age of 89.
He died due to old-age complications around 3pm on Thursday, his family sources said, quoting doctors. He is survived by three daughters and five sons and has left behind a host of relatives and admirers to mourn his passing.
Hailing from Kutubpur village in Shyamganj of Netrokona, Subodh Chandra was a popular English grammar teacher as well as an organizer of extracurricular activities, including science fairs, and political movements. He was admired for introducing a communicable style of teaching English grammar for the betterment of school students in rural areas.
Subodh Chandra began his career as headmaster of Sadhupara ME School in Purbadhala, Netrokona, in 1962 and turned it into a high school. He later joined Shyamganj High School, from where he had passed his SSC examination.
After retiring from Mukul Niketan High School in Mymensingh in 1998, he joined the Dhanmondi branch of Viqarunnisa Noon School and College as a part-time teacher. His wife, Shanti Rani Sarker, died from a stroke in 1982.
Before the country’s liberation, Subodh Chandra actively participated in the struggle for liberation as an organizer in Shyamganj. But in 1971, all the families of the Hindu-dominated village had to flee the country after the Pakistani military and their local collaborators launched a genocide, arson, and looting in the nearby areas. Later that year, while staying in a refugee camp in India, he got himself enlisted for training as a Freedom Fighter.
