Mumbai, September 6: In a remarkable achievement, two sisters from Mahulapankha village in the Kapatipada block of Mayurbhanj district, Odisha, have successfully cleared the NEET examination without attending any coaching classes. While Divyasenia Khatua passed in her first attempt, her elder sister Yagyasenia succeeded in her third attempt.
The sisters faced significant challenges due to a lack of mobile network connectivity in their village, making it difficult to attend online classes or download study materials. To overcome this, they would often climb nearby hills with their books and mobile phones to study, regardless of the weather conditions. They dedicated their evenings to studying on the hills, demonstrating their determination and commitment to their education.
Their father, Gourang Khatua, is a farmer, and their mother, Sunita, works as an Anganwadi helper. Due to the family’s limited income, it was not feasible for them to pay for expensive NEET coaching fees. Consequently, the sisters relied on self-study and the internet, despite the ongoing challenges posed by poor mobile network coverage.
This situation reflects a broader issue of the digital divide in rural India. According to data from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), hundreds of villages still suffer from weak or nonexistent mobile networks, particularly in hilly, tribal, and densely forested areas. Reports of individuals climbing hills for better network connectivity have emerged from states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, indicating that the struggles faced by the Khatua sisters are not unique.
The Indian government initiated the BharatNet project in 2011 to address network issues and connect rural India to high-speed broadband. However, the reality on the ground remains different, as the project’s progress has not translated into immediate benefits for rural areas. The Khatua sisters’ journey to study on the hilltops exemplifies the gap between planning and actual implementation.