Students of Telangana Tribal Welfare (TTW) Residential Junior Colleges in Hayathnagar, they shared their success story with South First.
In 2021, when the world was still healing from the Covid-19, two 15-year-olds from the Mancherial district in Telangana started off on a new journey.
The two — Gogula Nithya Sri and Manepally Ravi Kumar — got enrolled in separate junior colleges of the Telangana Tribal Welfare (TTW) Residential Centre of Excellence in Hayathnagar, Rangareddy district.
The teenagers belong to the Kolam community, which falls under the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) — a sub-category of Scheduled Tribes (ST). The tribe reportedly has a low literacy rate and is prone to Thalassemia, a genetic blood disorder.
And now they have scripted history by becoming the first from their community, as well as their respective alma maters, to make their way into the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT).
While Nithya Sri stood at 182nd rank under the ST category, Ravi Kumar did better by grabbing the 164th spot. Their primary choice of stream was Computer Science.
“It’s a big boost to my confidence and proof that even people from my community can study the IIT, NIT or even pursue medicine. I wish that, with my success, the path will be paved for others from the community to reach great heights,” Nithya told South First.
For Ravi, even if one person seeks inspiration from his success and follows their dream, he would believe he made his contribution to the community.
Nithya Sri’s did not go for her prime choice and instead chose Electronics and Communication branch.
“I wanted to take Computer Science, but with my rank I was getting it only in IIT Guwahati. It is too far from home, so I chose IIT Kharagpur,” said Nithya, a native of Talagujyala village in Bellampally mandal.
Nithya Sri with her parents at a felicitation ceremony in her school. (Supplied)
The student of TTW Junior College of Excellence (COE) for girls PVGT wants make her mark in the start-up world. “I want to open my own company so that I can create more employment and help my family too.”
Nithya completed Class 10 in her village and started preparing for the IIT and other entrance examinations after joining the TTW in Hayathnagar.
“I did not take any coaching. In the school hostel we had a library and the teachers also used to guide us about the syllabus and preparation techniques. They also helped us understand the concepts and cleared our doubts. The school used to conduct tests every Sunday for that week’s portion of the syllabus,” she explained.
Nithya’s father is a home guard with Telangana police while her mother, a home maker, studied till Class 7. Her two sisters are pursuing graduation in Nursing.
Ravi Kumar wished to get into a top 10 IIT but is happy making through IIT Tirupati in his preferred Computer Science branch.
“Being a first generation learner in my family, l am still happy that I made it this big,” he told South First.
He explained his strategy of being selective about which chapters to study. “From the chapters or topics I covered, I could solve any question. We were allotted four hours of time for preparation of the competitive exams and the teachers resolved our doubts.”
M Ravi Kumar. (Supplied)
A native of Bopparam village in Kotapally mandal, Ravi’s parents are agricultural workers. His younger sister is pursuing graduation and younger brother studies in Class 12.
His ultimate aim is to enter the Indian Administrative Services (IAS) by cracking the Civil Services Exam, another prominent exam across India.
He wanted to focus solely on civil services preparation initially and not study any technical degree course. However, he changed his mind after entering the TTW Junior College of Excellence (COE) for boys PVGT.
“I realised that if I do engineering, there will be campus placements and l will be able to settle much sooner and also I’ll be able to help my family. That’s why I studied for the entrance exams,” he said.
Studying at IIT wont deter his ambitions though. “Even while pursuing engineering I will prepare for civils and crack it,” he asserted.
Both Nithya and Ravi said that they received extensive support from their families, seniors and relatives, and others in the community.
“Our seniors used to say that if you get into a good college you will have a better future. The environment will be different and will automatically push us in the right direction,” Nithya recollected.
Nithya Sri being felicitated by her principal M Shylaja (third from left) and other faculties in her TTW junior college. (Supplied)
Ravi concurred with her. “The school management used to make the seniors speak to us and it was a great confidence-booster whenever they visited. Regional coordinators would also visit the campus frequently to know if the syllabus was being completed or if we have any other issues,” he said.
For the two, their parents gave utmost importance to education and did everything possible to get them educated.
Ravi wishes his parents, who are illiterate, could understand the scale of his achievement. “They are under the impression that I wrote a yet another exam and scored well.”
The challenges of Nithya and Ravi do not end by merely getting an admission in the IITs.
This is because they still have to pay the high fees and keep a check on their expenditure. The duo are hopeful of getting financial aid ahead of their admissions.
For Nithya, as both her sisters study in private colleges, it’s difficult for her father — sole earning member in the family — to pool in the money for her education at IIT Kharagpur.
“Though there are scholarships, they will only cover hostel accommodation. For other aspects like mess food, or even books it is difficult to get a fee-waiver. Even if my travel charges are covered, it would be of great help,” Nithya noted.
To get a grip on the English language is also a concern for the two as English has been a barrier throughout their their life, including their two years of intermediate, as it was in the Telugu-medium.
“It was difficult to catch up in the first month of intermediate, but eventually I did catch up,” Ravi rejoiced.
Both are determined to learn English as they enter a new phase in their lives.
“If I don’t understand any term or concept, I will ask my lecturers or try to look it up using online resources on the same day, so that their won’t be any backlog in the syllabus,” a confident sounding Nithya said.
Ravi plans to make good friends in IIT Tirupati with whom he hopes to improve his command on English.
The selection of these two is a cheerful moment and matter of ultimate pride for the faculty and students at their alma maters in Hayathnagar.
Both are first in the history of their junior colleges to make it to the IITs.
M Ravi Kumar. (Supplied)
“This school was started in 2018. Students, including from the Kolam community, in the school come from very backward areas like Asifabad, Adilabad and Mancherial. We feel very happy and proud because she is the first one and an inspiration for coming generation students,” Principal of the TTW Junior College of Excellence (COE) for girls in Hayathnagar, M Shylaja told South First.
She mentioned that three students also made it through to the National Institute of Technology (NIT) this year, while 13, including Nithya, made it to the Advanced stage of IIT-JEE.
Principal of the TTW Junior College of Excellence (COE) for boys in Hayathnagar M Yadagiri was also elated with Ravi’s success.
“Our school started in 2013, and he is the first to get into IIT. This year seven students qualified for IIT-JEE Advanced stage. Three more students are expecting a seat in the NIT,” he told South First.
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