Admin help ushers in hope for orphans

JEYPORE:  As the second wave of Covid-19 has left many kids orphaned forcing them to fend for themselves, the district administration has lent a helping hand to two kids of Bankobija village in Jeypore who lost their father to the deadly virus last month. A team led by Jeypore BDO SK Patnaik visited the children in their village and promised all necessary help to rehabilitate them.

Sources said, Subas Parija of Bankobija village succumbed to Covid-19 last month while undergoing treatment at the Covid Hospital in Jeypore, leaving behind his seven-year-old daughter Barsa and five-year-old son Ghasi behind. They had already lost their mother five years back. Barsa and Ghasi are now being looked after by their relatives and living separately in Bankobija and Kundra, respectively.

However, after social activists drew  the attention of the administration towards the plight of the families who are unable to take proper care of the siblings due to financial constraints, the local health and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) staff  have assured help.

Arrangement of death certificates of the parents, Aadhaar cards and caste certificates of the children for approval of pension under the Madhu Babu pension scheme have been initiated by the government for Covid orphans, they said. “We will extend all possible help to the kids to ensure their safe and secure future. We have also given the option to the guardians in case they wish to hand over the children to the administration and we will provide hostel facilities for them in Koraput,” said Patnaik.

10 days on, no aid for kids orphaned by Covid
Dhenkanal: Four children of Harijan Sahi village in Roda panchayat, who were orphaned by Covid-19, have been left to fend for themselves since the last 10 days without any aid from the administration. The kids, three girls aged 13, 11, 8 and a six-year-old boy, lost their mother to the virus on June 7. Sources said the mother was admitted to Dhenkanal Covid hospital after she tested positive.

She was shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack after her condition deteriorated but she succumbed during treatment on June 7. The children’s father had died of cancer in 2017. Ten days have passed since the children were orphaned but the administration is yet to reach them. Their uncle, Dillip Behera, said  he is worried about the children’s education and future.

“We cannot take care of them unless the government grants us financial assistance,” he said. Local anganwadi worker Kamini Behera said she has already sent documents pertaining to the children to the district child protection unit (DCPU). Block development officer (BDO) of Parjang Basant Mallik said he has informed the district child protection officer of the children’s plight but is yet to receive a response. “Unless we receive the necessary documents, we would not be able to sanction Madhubabu pension and other government assistance to the children,” he said. District child protection officer Anuradha Goswami could not be reached for comments. Recently, the State government has announced free education to all children who lost their parents to the Covid-19 pandemic under its ‘Green Passage’ scheme.