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The present study aims to examine the educational status and the cause of school dropouts, absenteeism, low enrolment and the male-female gap in literacy among tribals of Koraput district of Odisha. A survey was carried in 467 households constituting 1830 villagers to find out the educational status in Koraput district of Odisha. Subsequently, 104 children and adolescents aged between 9 and 16 were selected purposively in terms of schooling profile and household occupation for ascertaining the cause of absenteeism and dropout or leaving the study after primary education. The study found a literacy rate of 32.4% in the studied population and the major causes for school dropout and absenteeism were the economic problem, household work, lack of interest in the study, earning member of the family, parents not interested in studies, distance of schools and difficulties in reaching school, and language of teaching problem.

Background: Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by a protozoan parasite i.e. Plasmodium parasites. It is one of the most prevalent disorders worldwide. India ranked the fourth-highest number of death cases. In Odisha, more than two-thirds of malaria cases are reported from ten southern districts. A high risk of malaria infection is found in Koraput district of Odisha. The present study aims to access the knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) about malaria among the individuals of Koraput district, Odisha.Methods: This is a cross-sectional study and 258 respondents were taken randomly from five villages of Koraput district. Data on demographics as well as knowledge, attitude, and practices about malaria was collected by using self-modified and pretested schedules.Results: A significant number of the respondent (97.29%) have reported that they had heard about malaria. 37.60% of respondents answered that they knew it from television, followed by health workers (23.26%) and friends (20.54%). The majority (98.06%) of the sample reported that it is caused by mosquito bites. Almost 63% of the respondents were consulted with a doctor whereas 24.81% consulted first to traditional healers of that region. The majority (99.22%) has a mosquito net and 98.83% of them were used it after a proper wash.Conclusions: Although the study found good knowledge on malaria, still further awareness is required to elevate the present status. In this study most of the respondents had a good level of knowledge about malaria, however, attitude and practices about malaria prevention still need to be improved.

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The present study aims to explore the common health problems and the health-seeking behavior among the tribal population in Koraput district of Odisha. In order to assess the common health problems and the treatment-seeking behavior, 300 tribal individuals from 173 households in the age group of 18–64 years and 24 health care staff were recruited for the study. Information regarding health facilities, their affordability, and morbidity status were obtained through pre-structured questionnaires. Data analysis was carried out using SPSS-20 and Microsoft Excel software tools. Anemia, diarrheal problems, cold, pneumonia, vaginal problems, skin infection, fever, malnutrition, and sickle cell anemia were the common health problems reported by the respondents. In addition, the study found that the majority of the respondents relied on traditional health care practices. The initiation of proper awareness can help in reducing traditional health care practices among the tribal communities. Furthermore, the involvement of modern health care practitioners would help to reduce the disease burden in tribal communities.