ROURKELA: When the annual high school certificate (AHSC) examination results were declared last week by the Board of Secondary Education (BSE), the performance of tribal-dominated districts of Odisha presented an interesting pattern. Rayagada and Kandhamal had just six students each who had secured A1, the highest grade. Nabarangpur had nine, Malkangiri (22) and Koraput (18) among others. Kalahandi shone with 118 A1 grades while Mayurbhanj had 146 students who picked up the top grade.
Sundargarh’s performance was somewhere in the middle, with 56 students notching up A1. But one school of the district stood out, with 25 of its students securing A1 grade.
For decades, academic performance among tribal population has remained a persistent challenge. Acute backwardness, poor social infrastructure and weak learning environment at home along with academic support often pose huge hurdles but about 55 km from the hustle-bustle of Rourkela, the PM SHRI Government Centre of Excellence High School at Kutra block headquarters has quietly built an outstanding academic benchmark.
The Kutra high school’s excellence should be seen from the perspective of the overall performance of the district which has 406 schools. Not a single government school student in Rourkela secured A1 rank despite adequate infrastructure and support. On the other hand, private Odia medium schools walked away with 14 A1 positions.
ENVIABLE PERFORMANCE
What makes Kutra PM SHRI Government Centre of Excellence High School’s performance all the more significant is 22 of these successful students are from scheduled tribe (ST) communities while three are from scheduled caste families.
The school also produced the district’s first and second toppers - Sujit Tigga secured 575 marks while Selmong Lugun scored 573 marks. Both also emerged as top two ST students across Odisha in this year’s AHSC examination. The school secured 100 per cent results with all 177 students, including 60 girls, successfully clearing the examination. Of them, 59 students secured A2 grade while 53 students obtained B1 grade. Only five students remained below 50 per cent marks.
The consistency of the school’s performance has further drawn attention. In 2025 too, out of Sundargarh’s total 34 A1 rank holders, 17 students were from the same institution.
For a tribal-dominated district historically struggling to improve educational outcomes among tribal children, the results have come as a significant morale booster.
A TURNING POINT
The achievement is particularly remarkable considering the socio- economic background of most students. In several cases, children are first-generation learners and many belong to poor tribal families dependent on seasonal agriculture and migration labour. Parents often have limited education and are unable to provide academic guidance at home.
District topper Sujit Tigga comes from a poor family in Kutra. During lean agricultural seasons, his father Gosain Tigga works as a daily wager at a crusher unit in Tamil Nadu.
His classmate is Selmong, who secured the second highest marks in the district. Her father Sudeep Lugun is a marginal farmer and struggles to support a family of five.
Yet, within the disciplined environment of the Kutra school and hostel, many students have begun to see education as a path to dignity and social mobility. The HSC success has become a symbol of changing aspiration among tribal students who are increasingly beginning to compete with confidence.
Teachers say the biggest transformation has not been merely in marks but in the mindset of students who are now daring to dream beyond their immediate circumstances. Several successful students aspire to become doctors, civil servants and professionals, something that would have seemed unrealistic a few years ago.
STRATEGY TO EXCELLENCE
It’s the PM SHRI school’s academic strategy that evolved through continuous experimentation and close monitoring of students which delivered the success.
For the academic session 2025-26, all 177 students promoted to Class X were assessed at the beginning of the year to identify their strengths and weaknesses. A focused group of 35 students with comparatively higher academic potential was subsequently formed for intensive mentoring.
Extra revision classes for all students were conducted daily from 9 am to 9.45 am. Nearly 150 hostel students also attended evening coaching classes from 6.30 pm to 9 pm every day.
One of the key strategies was completion of the entire syllabus before the Dussehra festival. This enabled students to spend the remaining months exclusively on revision, solving model questions and clearing doubts before the board examinations.
Teachers remained accessible almost throughout the day and students were encouraged to repeatedly practice model questions to gain confidence.
The focused strategy yielded impressive results. Out of the specially identified group of 35 students, 25 eventually secured A1 grade.
COLLECTIVE EFFORT
At the centre of the school’s success story is a committed team of teachers driven more by passion than administrative compulsion.
Senior teacher Bibhisan Barik along with Deepika Kerketta and teachers Avinas Kar, Shruti Swarup Das, Rohit Jaipuria, Sursen Toppo, Manju Ekka, Sudha Mahananda and Shruti Sundar Sahu collectively built a culture of discipline and academic seriousness within the institution.
Barik, an Odia and Sanskrit teacher, said the teachers have already started implementing the same strategy for the new batch of students appearing in the 2027 examination. According to him, around 35 promising students have been retained in the hostel even during the summer vacation to continue studies and maintain academic continuity.
“The target is to complete the syllabus before Dussehra so that enough time remains for extensive revision and doubt clearance,” he said.
Barik said model question papers are prepared after extracting important questions from thousands of previous examination questions and students are guided through Smart Board-based practice sessions. “Every teacher in the school is self-motivated. We work collectively with a common goal to improve the academic standard of tribal children,” he added.
Science teacher and girls’ hostel in-charge Deepika Barik said the proximity of teachers’ residences to the school has greatly helped students. “All teachers stay within walking distance from the school and are available whenever students need support. Each teacher has informally adopted a few students for individual mentoring and doubt clearance,” she said.
TOPPERS SPEAK
Sujit credits his teachers. “My teachers helped me believe. My own hard work and devotion to study and guidance of teachers led to my achievement. I come from a poor tribal family and only good and higher education is the way to achieve my dream and support my family.” He wants to be an IAS officer.
Selmong studied for 8-10 hours daily and focused adequately on revision. “Our teachers were always supportive. The academic environment around me also inspired to do better. I aspire to be a doctor and I know hard and dedicated work are keys to my dream,” she says.
Located in Kutra block headquarters, the school presents a picture far removed from the stereotypical image of neglected rural government schools. Transformed under the High School Transformation programme of the state government, the institution has improved infrastructure, smart board facilities and a well-maintained campus with a disciplined academic atmosphere.
Though infrastructure alone cannot guarantee success, teachers say the improved learning environment has positively influenced students psychologically and encouraged them to take studies seriously.
For many hostel students coming from remote tribal villages, the school campus has effectively become a second home and a protected academic space.
HONOUR COMES CALLING
Recognising the achievement, Sundargarh collector Subhankar Mohapatra felicitated Sujit, Selmong and third ranked Jigna Nayak of Saraswati Sishu Mandir, Rourkela with laptops and cash prizes. The collector announced that all 56 A1 grade holders of the district would be felicitated separately and declared a Rs 40,000 scholarship each from the District Mineral Foundation fund.
“The Kutra school has performed exceptionally well. The administration is committed to supporting meritorious students in their future academic pursuits,” Mohapatra said.
The story of Kutra PM SHRI school ultimately is beyond examination outcome. In a region where poverty and disadvantage have long dictated educational outcomes, the school has shown that committed teaching, disciplined mentoring and belief in children can create extraordinary possibilities.