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At 24 years, Srikanth Bolla, born sightless, is the CEO of Hyderabad-based Bollant Industries, a Rs 10 crore company that manufactures eco-friendly, disposable consumer packaging solutions from natural leaf and recycled paper. Bolla had humble beginnings and had to fight many odds to reach here. Despite scoring 90 per cent in Class 10, he was denied admission to the

Science stream on account of his disability. However, Bolla went on to sue the State government and obtained permission to take up Science (though with a rider saying ‘at his own risk’). He passed with 98 per cent. Once again, he was not allowed to apply for competitive exams. This time, however, four prestigious US universities opened their doors to him and he chose the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), graduating in 2012. Soon after, he launched Bollant Industries with eight employees. Today, the company employs around 450 people (of whom 60 per cent are differently-abled) in its four production plants.