Asifabad’s promising mountaineer turns daily wager

Kumram Bheem Asifabad: In an unfortunate turn of events, Madavi Kannibai, a promising Adivasi mountaineer from remote Bheemangondi village in Kumram Bheem Asifabad district, has been forced to take up agriculture labour at Janagama village in Ramagundam mandal of Peddapalli district. Kannibai brought recognition to the State and her community Kolam, a particularly vulnerable tribal […]

Kumram Bheem Asifabad: In an unfortunate turn of events, Madavi Kannibai, a promising Adivasi mountaineer from remote Bheemangondi village in Kumram Bheem Asifabad district, has been forced to take up agriculture labour at Janagama village in Ramagundam mandal of Peddapalli district. Kannibai brought recognition to the State and her community Kolam, a particularly vulnerable tribal group, by unfurling the national flag atop the 6,512-metre high Bhagirathi II, a mountain in Uttarakhand, on June 2, 2020.

She is the first person from Kolam community to venture into the unconventional field and emerged as a role model for tribal women by excelling in mountaineering. The young mountaineer, however, has been forced to take up agriculture to make both ends meet. “I was left with no option but to become a daily wage earner. I approached the officials at the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA)-Utnoor seeking encouragement and employment opportunity, but in vain,” Kannibai told Telangana Today.

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Younger daughter of Bheembai, a widow and homemaker, Kannibai migrated to Peddapalli district a few days ago in search of livelihood. Kannibai, who lost her father six years ago, has been the breadwinner of the family for quite a long time. Her eldest brother Manku, a hearing impaired person by birth, is confined to the house. Another brother Anand Rao is settled in Maharashtra, while her sister is married to a person in Movad of Asifabad mandal.
She said she moved to Kalwada village in Dahegaon mandal of Kumram Bheem Asifabad to eke out a living as a daily wager. “I have to do one or the other job to feed my family members and meet various expenses. I have been migrating to different parts of the district and neighbouring districts,” she disclosed.

Kannibai has also won two medals in an international water rappelling competition at Katika waterfalls in Visakhapatnam in 2019. She was presented a certificate of appreciation by the then District Collector Divya Devarajan for excelling in mountaineering, on August 15 the same year. She led a team comprising 12 ethnic tribal youngsters who provided safety to people in adventure activities in Adilabad Harita Vanam. She is currently pursuing BA from Kakatiya University on distance mode.

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