Soren felicitates tribal students selected for scholarship to study in UK

  • | Thursday | 23rd September, 2021

Ranchi, Sep 23 (PTI) Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Thursday felicitated six tribal students selected for the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda Overseas Scholarship Scheme, saying the number of such pupils may be increased to about 25 from 10. The overseas scholarship scheme rolled out by the state Government will enable 10 students, every year, from the Scheduled Tribes category residing in Jharkhand to pursue higher studies in the universities of the United Kingdom. For the first cohort of the scholarship, six students have been selected who will pursue different courses in five different universities of England, a statement from the state government said. Nearly a century after Jharkhand"s tribal icon Jaipal Singh Munda was admitted to St John"s College, Oxford, the six students have been selected for pursuing higher studies in prestigious UK institutes under the programme instituted in his name. Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister said: "With immense pride, I can say that despite being a very weak and suppressed community, this state has a legacy of producing leaders like Birsa Munda, Poto-Ho, Veer Buddhu Bhagat, Sidho-Kanhu, Nilamber-Pitamber, and many more. ...Present era is a scientific era and our tribal population is backward in this domain." The chief minister exuded confidence that more students will come under the scheme and the government will increase the number of students to about 25. "Not only tribal students, but we will also try to add other communities within the ambit of this scheme," he said while felicitating the students and their parents. The students are entitled to complete coverage of tuition fees along with living and other miscellaneous expenses, the statement said. The scheme was approved by the Jharkhand Cabinet in December last year. British Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata Nick Low described the scheme as a visionary step towards the betterment of marginal communities and promised future cooperation for a larger partnership in education and other allied domains between the UK and Jharkhand. In a letter addressed to the chief minister, he congratulated Soren for successfully rolling out the scheme and helping students from tribal communities to go overseas to pursue higher studies. "The legacy of Jaipal Singh Munda, who started his Oxford BA programme a century ago will, I believe, now be taken forward both through this batch of scholars and subsequent beneficiaries,” he mentioned in the letter. Welcoming the inaugural cohort to the universities of the UK, he wrote that the British Deputy High Commission looked forward to building on this initiative to drive a deeper and larger partnership in education and other allied areas. Born in a tribal family at Takra Pahantoli hamlet in undivided Bihar, Jaipal Singh Munda who used to look after cattle was taken by missionaries to England after they recognised his exceptional talent and he graduated with Honours in Economics from St John’s College, Oxford. Munda had left the coveted ICS and later captained the Indian Hockey team in the 1928 Amsterdam Olympic Games to win the gold medal. Munda who had taken up teaching assignments abroad returned to India in 1937 and became a voice for the rights of tribal people. Among the selected students, Hercules Singh Munda will pursue an MA at the University of London"s School of Oriental and African Studies while Ajitesh Murmu will study for an MA in Architecture at the University College of London. Akanksha Mery has been selected for an MSc course in Climate Change Science and Management at Loughborough University. Dinesh Bhagat will pursue an MSc programme in Climate Change, Development and Policy at the University of Sussex and Anjana Pratima Dungdung has been selected for an MSc course at the University of Warwick. Priya Murmu will pursue an MA in Creative Writing at Loughborough University. The tribal icon was called ‘Marang Gomke’ (great leader) in Mundari, a regional language in Jharkhand. Munda was also a part of the Constituent Assembly, responsible for drafting the Indian Constitution. PTI NAM MM MM


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