My Story: 'Children In Tribal Communities Have A Lot Of Potential And I Want To Provide Them With Best Opportunities'

I belong to a nomadic community living in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. It is infamously known for the adverse agricultural distress. My parents are farmers who did not complete their primary education. My mother studied till Class 4, while my father studied till Class 3. She got married to my father at a really young age. Despite my parents not having a formal education, they made sure that both my brother and I studied to our hearts' content.

I went to school in the village itself. After that, I decided to pursue higher studies in Pune because of which I had to leave my home in 2011. There, I felt extremely clueless as I had no guidance whatsoever. Due to a financial crisis, I had to leave the city and took up a course under Distance Education. This very moment is still etched in my mind. There are many people like me who deserve the opportunity to get a college degree but do not have enough resources. Therefore, I decided to work towards making sure that first generational learners, especially in marginalised communities, get to fulfil their dreams.

Tapping The Potential On The Grassroot Level

While pursuing my degree that year, I was working with an organisation called 'Melghat Mitra' for two years. While engaging with the tribal groups there, I realised that young children in the villages have so much potential, be it in sports or education. However, they do not have access to opportunities that could help them pursue their studies. This held true even when I studied in Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) as there was a severe lack of diversity.

Realising the dire need, I started the Eklavya Movement in 2017. This became a platform for students in marginalised communities to channelise their potential in the best way possible by mentoring them. I began this initiative in Yavatmal with just 7 children. Now, we work with 300 children and help them realise their dream of making a change in the world they live in.

Road To Chevening Scholarship

For my Master's degree, I wanted to go to the UK. I got admission letters from around 19 colleges. Along with my personal struggles, the need to understand the situation abroad was what motivated me to apply abroad. I had been trying for the past two years but I was not getting any decent scholarships. It was then when I applied for the Chevening scholarship that looked at the candidate's leadership skills and the amount of work done. I was the right fit because of which I got the scholarship.

Achieving this feat felt brought great happiness to my parents. It does not matter that they cannot pronounce the scholarship's name or understand it. Their lifelong dream of educating their children was a reality after crossing several hurdles. They supported me through thick and thin, because of which I am where I am at the moment. Now, I am working towards opening a university that caters to all kinds of subjects and bridge all the gaps our education system has at the moment. I want to make education more accessible for the tribal communities and this is just the beginning of a long road ahead.

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