Indigenous peoples in India are often poor and marginalized – but former teacher Draupadi Murmu has managed to become one of the country’s top state officials.

New Delhi – India’s new President Draupadi Murmu has been sworn in. The 64-year-old is the first head of state of India’s indigenous ethnic group. Murmu, a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP party, was sworn in on Monday. “My election is proof that the poor in this country have dreams and can make them come true,” he said afterwards, according to local television station NDTV. India’s head of state fulfills – similar to the Federal President of Germany – above all representative duties, power rests with the prime minister. The president is elected every five years. Murmu is the second woman to hold the post.

The Murmu are ethnically one of the indigenous people of India. Indigenous people make up 8.6 percent of India’s population of about 1.3 billion people. Indigenous people are often poor and marginalized – even if, among other things, some positions in government are reserved for that ethnic group. Traditionally, they live in or near forests, where they live as hunter-gatherers. Many are also active as farmers.

Murmu is a former teacher and then governor of Jharkhand state. As governor, he campaigned for the rights of India’s indigenous people. As president, he wants to work for the well-being of marginalized people, he said Monday.

Previous presidents have also been among the marginalized: Ram Nath Kovind is a Dalit, that is, a member of the lowest-level caste system that was once considered “untouchable”. The situation of the Dalits did not change much during his presidency. Dalits experience a lot of discrimination. dpa