Didayi girl from Malkangiri breaks barriers, secures MBBS seat in NEET 2025

Bhubaneswar: In an inspiring milestone for tribal education in Odisha, Champa Raspeda, daughter of Lachmu Raspeda of Amlibeda village under Nakamamudi Gram Panchayat of Korukonda Block, has created history by becoming the first student from the Didayi Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) in Malkangiri district to qualify NEET 2025 and secure admission into Fakir Mohan Medical College & Hospital, Balasore.

Champa, who belongs to a humble farming family, has shown that perseverance and determination can overcome all odds. Her father is a marginal farmer, while her mother is a homemaker.

She began her early schooling at the PVTG Girls Education Complex, Nandiniguda (Khairput Block) under the SSD Department. She later pursued her studies at SSD Girls’ High School, Chitrakonda and completed her matriculation in 2019.

After passing +2 Science in 2021 from SSD Higher Secondary School, Govindpally, financial hardship forced her to discontinue her B.Sc. studies. Yet, her dream to become a doctor never faded. With guidance from her former science teacher Utkala Keshari Dash, Champa joined free NEET coaching classes at Balasore.

Odisha has been witnessing a steady rise in the educational achievements of tribal students, particularly in the field of medicine. Over the past few years, several tribal students from different communities have cleared NEET and secured MBBS seats in government medical colleges.

The Didayi tribe, one of the 13 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) of Odisha, inhabits the remote forested regions of Malkangiri district, particularly in the Kudumulugumma and Khairput blocks. Traditionally dependent on shifting cultivation, forest gathering, and small-scale farming. For a young girl from this community to break barriers and enter the medical profession is a remarkable step toward empowerment and social transformation.

The State Government is celebrating Champa’s success. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has expressed his happiness over the student’s achievement on his X account.