Mangala Muduli hails from a tribe that has the lowest literacy rate among all the 62 tribes of Odisha. According to a 2011 census, the literacy rate of the Bonda tribe in Odisha was a measly 36.61%, which is lower than other major particularly vulnerable tribals groups in the state.
But Muduli, a 19-year-old Bonda tribal boy from Badbel village under Mudulipada panchayat of Govindapalli block in Malkangiri district may have managed to achieve what others in the tribe may not have dreamt of. The 19-year-old boy has become the first person from the primitive vulnerable tribal group to clear the NEET exam and enrol for MBBS course in MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur town of Ganjam district, more than 400 km away from his home. In his first attempt at the exam, he secured 261st rank in NEET among the tribal candidates who were declared successful in this year’s exam.
Hailing from a farmers’ family, Muduli completed his schooling at Mudulipada SSD High School and went on to pursue his higher education at SSD Senior Secondary School in Govindapalli, run by the SC and ST development department. His elder brother had already dropped out of school and not many in the family thought about a better future for him.
But when he was studying higher secondary in science, his teacher Utkal Keshari Das goaded him to write medical entrance exam and enrolled him in a coaching institute in Balasore.
The young Bonda boy had the dream of becoming a doctor since his childhood as there were no healthcare facilities available near his village. “I have seen the suffering of people in my village to get healthcare services. If anyone fell sick, they had to walk miles to a primary health centre. In such a situation, many people sought sorcerer’s help. I wanted to change that,” he said.
However, he did not know that one has to write NEET exam to pursue medical education. “I had no idea about any entrance to appear in to get enrolled into medical education. I thought I can study MBBS if I pursued science in +2,” he said. It was his science teacher who came to his rescue getting him a mobile phone through which he downloaded study materials. The science teacher got him enrolled to a coaching centre.
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“Mangala was a very good student and I knew he could crack the exam. I just provided him with the necessary guidance and support to help him to study free though the centre charged ₹1.2 lakh for others,” said his teacher.
Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan congratulates Muduli
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan congratulated Muduli for his success. “He has proved that success can be achieved even in adverse situation with strong willpower and determination. He is an inspiration for the tribal community,” he write in X. Former chief minister Naveen Patnaik wrote: “Strong willpower and hard work are the keys to success. Mangala Muduli from Mudulipada Banda Ghati in Malkangiri District is a shining example of this. His determination has paved the way for him to study medicine. This achievement is a source of inspiration for all. Wishing him a bright future.”
The names Bonda (also known as Bondo, Bondas, Bonda Paraja, and Bhonda) signify ‘naked people’. They belong to the Austro-Asiatic racial stock and speak Remo-an Austro-Asiatic dialect. The Bondas are exclusively found in Malkangiri district of Odisha and are mostly concentrated in Khairaput block of the district.
