EY employee’s death: Anna wanted to work for UN and WHO, she wanted to explore the world, says her mother

Anna was allegedly glued to her laptop and clocking in hours to serve the client requirements, the over-exerted youngster did this in the hope of a better future

For 26 years old Anna Sebastian Perayil, life was about exploring newer horizons. So, when the all-rounder young girl from the town of Kochi in Kerala received an offer from EY’s sister affiliate SRBC to work in Pune, she fought against the wish of her parents to fly to a new city.

“We were not very keen that she leaves Kochi. But she insisted and said she wanted to see the world. She talked about how her cousins had already started working in different cities, how they were travelling for education. She was excited about going to Pune, about living there,” said Anita Augustine. As the heartbroken mother spoke about the shattered dreams of a family, she said she only wished the culture of overwork was not glorified.

Anna did not get time for anything since she moved to Pune. She stayed there for four months before passing away in July this year due to a heart attack. She didn’t get time to make new friends, to see the city, to explore its culture. Forget all of that, she did not even get to interact with others in her own PG accommodation, the mother told The Hindu from Kochi.

“By the time she returned late night from office, they would be asleep. When she would go to work in the early hours, their day hadn’t even started,” Ms. Anita said.

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“These young kids leave parents for a new place. They are isolated. They should be given some support. They should be helped for the first two years at least,” she said, expressing disappointment that there was no sensitivity towards their struggles.

And while Anna was allegedly glued to her laptop and clocking in hours to serve the client requirements, the over-exerted youngster did this in the hope of a better future. “There were no weekly offs, no comp offs. She did not get paid for the extra work she did. In fact, even on the weekend when she fell ill, she was working. She had told her manager that her laptop was not working, and that she was going to the office to get it resolved with the IT team. The organisation now says, she worked till July 19. No, she worked on July 20 as well, the night she fell ill,” Ms. Anita said.

Anna wanted to stay in the job for one year, get a certificate from one of the Big Fours, and then move to greener pastures. “After I get this certificate, I will get a good job anywhere. I want to get experience and exposure here,” she once told her parents.

Anna’s mother said that in Pune, she was lonely, allegedly working at erratic hours, travelling over one hour to 1.5 hours outside the city to visit the client factories. “She would go to the company and audit them. Often, their factories are not inside the city. So the travel time is also more,” Ms. Anita said.

Anna was a CA by profession, a meritorious student since her childhood. “She gave her CA exam in November 2023. The result came in January 2024. She appeared for Inter in 2020. She cleared Part 1 and Part 2 in first attempt itself. After Inter, she did her articleship for three years at a firm in Kochi. Thereafter, she appeared for her final. The selection for her new job took place in February 2024,” Ms. Anita said.

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Anna had secured 92.6% for B. Com in 2019 when she studied at the Sacred Heart College in Kochi. She had secured 96.25% in her 12th Standard when she studied at Rajagiri Public School, a CBSE school. She was an all-rounder who won several awards for debate, art and craft, music, badminton.

“She wanted to become a CA. Then she wanted to work with the UN and WHO, for humanitarian causes. She wanted to travel the world. In school, they had mock UN debates. In ICA too, she won the prize. She was selected to go to the USA in 12th for mock UN. But due to financials, and due to several other constraints, she couldn’t go. She was interested in cooking, in debating, in art and craft, in music. She was an inter-school badminton player. She was always doing something or the other,” the mother kept talking of Anna in present tense, though the copy has been modified.

Published - September 30, 2024 11:50 am IST