Dambaru Sisa, the 33-year-old newly elected BJD MlA from the Chitrakonda seat in Malkangiri district, is the first-ever member of the particularly vulnerable Bonda tribe to enter the Assembly.
Sisa, a postgraduate in Mathematics who took oath as a member of the Assembly on Friday, said he is happy to be the first member from his Bonda community to be elected as an MlA and he would try his best to bring to the notice of the Assembly the plight of the community.The Bonda tribe, identified as one of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), is found only in Odisha’s Malkangiri district. The literacy rate among the Bondas is just 8 per cent.
Sisa is the first among the Bondas to be a Master degree holder. Although he had taken up a constable’s job in the CRPF, he chose to quit it and work for development of his community.Sisa, who had lost his parents at the age of 12, said he was fortunate enough to get the patronage of Sarvoday Samiti headed by Akshay Mohanty in Koraput district for his education.
