For at least four months during the coronavirus-induced lockdown 17-year-old Naini Mamatha was unable to study online or to seek the guidance of her teachers in preparing for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Mains 2020. A member of the Adivasi Korwa community, which is recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Primitive Group (PVPG), Mamatha could not afford a smartphone, a necessity for online learning, due to her poor financial background.
But Mamatha managed to beat the odds by securing 89.11 percentile in the exam.
Over 700 students from the state-aided Telangana Social and Tribal Welfare Residential Educational Institutions cleared (JEE) Mains, a new record in the institution’s history. Telangana Social and Tribal Welfare Residential Educational Institutions provide education to marginalised Dalit, Bahujan and Adivasi communities.
Mamatha is the first member in her family to receive an education, despite not having adequate resources to aid her. Still, she believes she could have scored even higher. “I thought that I would get more than 90%, so I am a little disappointed,” a timid Mamatha tells TNM.
Hailing from Gollapally village in Mancherial district, Mamatha’s parents, Madhunayya and Srilatha, work as agricultural labourers. “My parents encouraged me to study. They did not have the opportunity to study. So they are very happy with my performance,” she says.
Mamatha attributes her success to the mentoring from her college teachers at Tribal Welfare Junior College, which is run by the Telangana Social and Tribal Welfare Residential Educational Institutions. “I used to study for close to eight hours every day. I would self-evaluate every day by writing an exam,” she says.
Praising Mamatha, P Aruna, the college principal, says, “For nearly four months, she could not be in touch with us. We could not offer her classes via online as their family did not have a smartphone. And she was helping the family by doing agriculture work. Finally, just 15 days before the exams, we somehow managed to get her back to the hostel and were able to prepare her.”
Her success has renewed Aruna’s dedication to educating students. The Tribal Welfare Junior College in Hayathnagar, Hyderabad, was established two years ago, acknowledging the fact that even among Scheduled Tribes, only certain groups can avail the opportunity to study. The college specifically aims at admitting students from the PVPG.
However, teaching these students is a very challenging task, Aruna says. “Since they come from Telugu-medium background, we have to teach them from the basics, besides their regular curriculum. It is a tough task which requires a lot of determination,” the principal notes.
“She is really good in Maths and Physics and has a lot of interest in these subjects. Only English is difficult for her,” Aruna adds.