TRIBAL FIRST

Droupadi Murmu, India's first president from the adivasi community, has avoided political controversy thus far

- Romita Datta

The journey from the remote Uparbeda T village in the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha to Raisina Hill in Delhi had been long and arduous. As India's first president from the tribal community, Droupadi Murmu summed it all up in her first address to the nation after her appointment: "Reaching this office isn't my personal achievement but that of all poor people. My election is proof... that in India the poor can dream and fulfil their dreams." Murmu was working for the adivasis when the BJP's Raj Kishore Das saw in her an immense potential that could help the party grow among tribals. At every level o