Berhampur, Nov. 15: A 15-year-old tribal girl, who studies in Class X at a residential school for SC and ST students at Baliguda block in Kandhamal district, has become pregnant.
The matter came to light after the girl's mother lodged a complaint at Baliguda police station against one Amit Majhi of Gudlipadar last evening.
District collector Jamini Sarangi has ordered an inquiry into the incident.
"During this year's summer vacation, the girl had gone to her home in Gudlipadar village. Though she came back to school once the recess was over, she has not gone out of her hostel since then," said the school headmistress.
The headmistress said she questioned the girl and her mother after other hostel inmates informed her about the physical changes they noticed in the victim's body.
At present, about 200 girls study at the school.
The pregnancy test revealed that the girl was six months pregnant.
"I immediately informed district welfare officer Ganeswar Bharimalla and the collector about the incident. On the district welfare officer's advice, the minor girl's mother lodged the police complaint.
"We have registered a case and are investigating the entire episode," said inspector in charge of Baliguda police station Jaswant Kumar Hial.
Police sources said efforts were on to trace Majhi, who had allegedly made her pregnant.
The girl's mother alleged that Majhi had a physical relationship with her daughter when she went to her aunt's house after visiting Gudlipadarduring the summer vacation.
Majhi, who works as a driver, is now in Kerala, the victim's mother said.
This is, however, not an isolated incident. This year, several such cases were reported from various tribal residential schools across the state.
Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste development minister Lal Behari Himirika admitted in the Assembly that at least 16 students of various sevashram schools had been the victims of rape in the past five years.
On September 5, National Commission for Scheduled Tribes chairman Rameshwar Oraon, too, had expressed concern over cases of tribal schoolgirls getting pregnant. Oraon had conveyed his concern to chief secretary G.C. Pati during a meeting to discuss infrastructure and education in tribal schools.
The meeting was held after a five-member team of the National Commission for SC, led by Oraon, visited various state-run and central government-sponsored ST residential schools across the state.
On February 10, members in the Assembly had expressed their concern over the safety and security of inmates in residential schools and girls' hostels run by the ST and SC development department.
A similar incident was reported from another residential school in the same district last year.
Earlier this year, a Class VI student of the sevashram at Semligua block in Koraput district delivered a boy on February 4.
In yet another incident, a Class X student of another residential school at G. Udaygiri block in Kandhamal district gave birth to a boy in the school's hostel on January 23 night.
Around 4.5 lakh students study in the schools run by the ST and SC development department across the state, and of them, around 4 lakh reside in hostels.