Kolkata, March 1 (IANS) Nasima Khatun, 16, cannot hold a pen in her hands and write. A polio attack when she was five has left her hands crippled. But she has appeared for the Class 10 board exams in West Bengal and wrote the papers holding the pen in her mouth.

"Crippled hands and penury could not stop Nasima from appearing in the board exam. She is very studious and always scored good marks in her school exams," said Sheik Shafi Alam, headmaster of Golabari Pallimangal High School where she studies.

"Now, she has become an inspiration for other students also. It is her willpower that made Nasima so strong," he said.

Nasima of North 24-Parganas' Baro Mallika village is described by her teachers as a sincere student who always scored above 70 percent marks in all exams.

Nasima is the only daughter of Ajan Ali, a daily wage earner. She has two elder brothers and both of them are engaged in small-time jobs to support their family.

Alam recalled those days when a local doctor said she would never be able to write again and Nasima would cry her heart out. Later, she was admitted to a primary school and that changed the course of her life forever.

"Nasima with the strength of her willpower started using her mouth to hold the pen and write," he said.

According to Alam, Nasima wants to pursue higher studies and work for the awareness of the polio programme, as she understands the importance of polio vaccination and eradication.