Berhampur: Despite facing numerous challenges and limited resources, three tribal students from Odisha’s Kandhamal district successfully cleared the NEET medical entrance examination.
The three students are identified as Sanatan Pradhan, Kalakar Pradhan and Linsa Pradhan.
19-year-old Sanatan Pradhan, a tribal student from Tadimaha village in the tribal-dominated Kandhamal, cracked the prestigious All-India entrance exam on his first attempt.
Sanatan belongs to the Kondh tribe. His father Kaneswar Pradhan is a small farmer. Without any formal coaching, Sanatan cracked the NEET and is set to join the government-run MKCG Medical College in Berhampur.
After completing his Class-X at a government school in Daringbadi, Sanatan moved to Khallikote Junior College, Berhampur, for his Class-XII studies. Upon finishing, he returned to his village to prepare for the NEET exam.
With no internet service in his village, Sanatan had to walk 3-4 km each day and climb a hill to access the internet for his studies. He mentioned that it was a challenging routine, spending hours on the hill daily. Two months before the NEET exam, he returned to Berhampur to focus on his preparation, relying on online resources and borrowing books from friends.
Sanatan conveyed his commitment to studying sincerely to become a doctor to serve people in remote areas with limited medical facilities.
It can be mentioned here that Sanatan’s family have borrowed some amount of money to confirm his seat. His father Kaneswar mentioned that several bankers had approached them with offers for student loans; however, they have planned to request financial assistance from the state government for Sanatan’s medical education.
The other two successful students — Kalakar Pradhan of Saberenga village under Sinabali panchayat and Linsa Pradhan of Garjedi village under Badabanga panchayat — defeated all odds to crack NEET.
Kalakar was preparing for the medical entrance while tending his herd of cattle and attending to agricultural work with his family members. He was collecting necessary tips from the social media platform YouTube and cleared NEET on his second attempt.
Similarly, Linsa, a differently-abled girl, also cleared the test on her second attempt. She was preparing for NEET by collecting materials from online and social media platforms. She has 70 per cent problems in her backbone.
PNN