Covid orphans’ traumatic tales: 7 lose both parents in Lucknow

LUCKNOW: After a one-year gap, Anush Awasthi (14) and his younger sister Anushka Awasthi (six) are preparing for their entrance exam to get admission to a local English medium school. They have been offered complete fee waiver by the school up to intermediate, as both their parents—Suchita and Anurag Awasthi—succumbed to corona infection within six days last month.
The Awasthi family suffered another jolt when Anurag Awasthi’s elder brother Anupam, too, died of corona infection just a week later. On Saturday, Anupam’s younger daughter Aditi Awasthi (15) took her written test for admission to class ninth. The school has offered to 50% waiver of her fee. Her mother Mamta Awasthi now has to arrange money for her uniform, books, and stationery.
Both Aditi and her elder brother, Anant Awasthi (17), who cleared his high school in 2020, are now solely dependent on the monthly monetary help announced by the state government on Saturday.
Anurag and Anupam both were in private jobs. The family has very little savings which won’t last till the end of this year. “Since last year, all four cousins are sitting at home, as the corona pandemic left our parents jobless. Now I’m searching for a job, as I need to support my mother as well as sister and two cousins,” said Anant, who wanted to become a cop but now has an uncertain future.
Similarly, some 35km away from Lucknow in a remote village of Malihabad, Pooja (17) has isolated herself in grief following her father’s death. Eldest among five siblings, the girl dropped out of school last year to support her family. Her gloomy eyes fill with tears when anyone questions about her father. Her younger siblings, like Anit (15), Shivangi (13), Ajit (7) and Ayush (5), are currently struggling to arrange twice meal a day for themselves and their mother. The sole bread earner of the family Sanjevan Lal, who was a daily wage labour with no land or farm field, died of Covid-19 on May 3.
“We have been poor throughout our lives. My husband was a big strength for me. We both were striving hard to get our children educated and get our daughters married but today I’m struggling to feed my children,” said Rajkumari, who lives under a hut covered with black plastic sheet along with her children. Around two weeks back, the family was provided with some ration by state authority. Now, they hope that the help announced by the state government would come to help them.
According to child welfare committee, Lucknow, there are at least seven children registered with the district probation office who have lost their both parents. However in total 80 children have been affected (majority lost one parent) by corona pandemic.
Speaking to TOI, CWC member Sangeeta Sharma said, “The corona pandemic has not only impacted children of extremely marginalized society and middle class, but also of well to do educated families. For example, Shakti Nagar-based Priya Handa who has been a teacher in two very reputed schools of Lucknow is struggling to secure the future of her two children; age three and two.”
“My husband Anshu Handa succumbed to corona in April and now I find it difficult to raise my children, as I don’t have a job. How will I meet the expenses of my children,” said Priya, who currently lives with her inlaws.