Deepika Hembram: A dream comes true

How KISS has become a real game-changer in the last few decades cannot be better portrayed than through the journey of Dipika Hembram. The Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), Bhubaneswar, helped Dipika emerge from a maze of darkness to script a dream-cum-true tale.

Achyuta Samanta, educationist, social activist and philanthropist, ushered in huge revolution with KISS. One can hardly believe that a small residential school that conceived with 125 very poor indigenous tribal children in a rented house way back in 1992-93 has grown into a massive deemed-to-be university since 2017.

After more than three decades of glorious journey, Samanta doesn’t require an introduction. From negotiating arduous early years, today is a great rallying point for people at home and abroad.

KISS stands out like a symbol of Samanta’s tenacity and determination. Currently, he is a member of the Indian Parliament. Besides education and tribal uplift, healthcare and rural development, he has contributed immensely to art, culture, literature, film, media, society and national integration. His contribution to the field of sports, right from the grassroots to international podiums, can hardly be elaborated on paper.

Besides KISS, Samanta also founded Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT). Both educational institutions have achieved global repute and recognition. KIIT is an Institution of Eminence and one of the most prominent universities for professional education not only in India but across the world with more than 30,000 students from 65 countries, including India. KISS is home to 60,000 indigenous children, absolutely free.

Entrepreneurship generation, skill training, formal education from KG to PG, world-class sports infrastructure and extracurricular/outreach activities go hand in hand at KISS. In fact, KISSians are known as brilliant sportspersons. Many have crafted careers for themselves in the field of medicine, technology and administration. Being the first and exclusive largest tribal university in the globe, KISS-DU is a national hub of research in traditional tribal uplift.

Knowledge

Deepika Hembram is one such illustrious student of KISS. She was born to Muchiram and Salge Hembram of the Santhal tribal community of remote Bitar Amda village in the Kerbani panchayat area, Dumuria block of East Singhbhum district, Jharkhand. The village is surrounded by dense forests. The 800-odd tribal inhabitants of the village make a living out of the forest produce and shifting agriculture on the forest slopes. Father Muchiram often had to struggle to fend for his family along with his four children and supportive wife. Education was a far cry when arranging two square meals.

It was an uphill task for the widowed mother to support the family. She began to work as a daily wager to arrange food for her children. The family gained a little strength as time healed the sorrow and Deepika’s maternal uncle helped.

Though illiterate, Deepika’s mother understood the value of education and shared her late husband’s dream of educating her children. She came to know about KISS from word of mouth and arranged to get her daughter admitted to Class I at KISS. The system in place at KISS rekindled hope of fulfilling her dream of a better future for her child. The early years at KISS were difficult for Deepika. But gradually the mother-tongue-based learning system at KISS helped her and she was absorbed into the enabling environment of KISS. She began to enjoy her life at KISS as compared to her life in the village. Time heals everything.

But this has not mellowed her; rather she is determined to excel in her studies and has taken to painting. She hopes to become an empowered citizen of the nation. She is indebted to Samanta for giving her an opportunity of a lifetime. Being motivated by Samanta, she wants to give back to her community in any small measure she can. Even today, when she visits her village in the holidays, she helps her mother and gets pleasure out of farming and housekeeping. She has the ambition of becoming a physician and assuage the pain and suffering of her community.

In Odisha, the Scheduled Tribe population constitutes 22.8% of the total population as of the last census. Santhals are the third largest tribe in India. In Odisha, the tribe is divided into several totemic exogamous clans. Their basic occupation revolves around the forests. Dancing and singing are part of their community life. Santhali language belongs to the Austro-Asiatic language family. Santhalis have their own village deities such as Marang Baru, Monreko Tureiko, Jahar Era and Gosani Era.

Besides handholding children like Deepika from marginalised groups, KISS has also created awareness about girl child education, empowerment and upskilling. By encouraging entrepreneurship, KISS is enabling tribal communities to play their role as caretakers of the ecosystem and biodiversity.

This article has been curated in association with Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS).