Leeta was my classmate during 1989-91. She was an affable lady with a ready smile, as I recall.
Originally from Rourkela in western Odisha, she was one of the two ladies who used to read news on the Rourkela Steel Plant’s (RSP) television channel during the 1980s.
She was one of the two students who cracked the Xavier Admission Test (XAT) from Rourkela and got admission to XIMB after a personal interview.
In 1989 our batch size was 56 students against the quota of 60 permitted by AICTE. The Late Father R D’ Souza was very picky about selecting students. She chose to stop admissions at 56 instead of filling the quota of 60.
Leeta was a competent student who shone in her MBA journey. In the final placements, she bagged a coveted position as a consultant in one of India’s leading companies. She was set for a glorious career in her chosen vocation.
After marriage and giving birth to a lovely child, she and her husband were looking forward to a life with zest and joy.
She frequently used to travel with her family to Odisha during vacations.
During one of her visits a humungous tragedy struck.
On the 24th of February 1999, she was traveling in an SUV with her husband and child and seated in the vehicle's second row. They had kept their luggage consisting of a couple of suitcases behind the SUV seats they were traveling.
Due to sudden hard braking by the SUV driver or some sudden lurching of the vehicle, the suitcase kept behind the second row suddenly hit Leeta in the back of her head. Though the impact was minor, it hit some sensitive portion of the back of the head, and Leeta collapsed.
They rushed her immediately to the nearest hospital but she unfortunately did not survive.
The family was devastated. After a few years, they accepted the fact. To continue her legacy, her family instituted the Leeta Misra-Ankalkoti Gold Medal, awarded to the top-rank holder among the ladies in the class at XIMB.
And thus, her legacy continues…
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