Komna: In a heart-wrenching incident, three minor boys were orphaned after their mother and a brother died of diarrhoea at Tarbod village under Komna police limits in Nuapada district Friday. The orphans’ father Kusa Majhi, who was a farmer, had committed suicide a few years back due to heavy crop loss.
Shockingly, the children were unable to perform the last rites of their mother and brother as they had no money even to buy food. Locals said the children were found to be starving and demanded that the government immediately take steps to set things right. The last rites were performed after locals got together to raise funds.
The family, in happier times, lived in Tarbod village where the children’s father Kusa worked as a sharecropper. He would cultivate the farmlands by borrowing money from private moneylenders and self-help groups. However, he ran into heavy losses and was left devastated. Later, he committed suicide in 2009.
Several agitations and road blockades were staged demanding compensation for Kusa’s family. However, no compensation was given to the family members.
After her husband’s death, wife Jema Majhi (45) began working odd jobs to raise her sons Ghanshyam (20), Janma Majhi (15), Debasingh Majhi (8) and Giridhar Majhi (6).
Jema worked as a domestic help as well as a daily labourer to feed her sons. However, she was afflicted by a severe bout of diarrhoea and died July 26. The four boys were orphaned and helpless after their mother’s death.
With the help of their relatives and locals, they performed the last rites of their mother.
However, in a tragic turn of events, the eldest son Ghanshyam too suffered diarrhoea and he too later died of the disease August 3.
The deaths of the mother and son in quick succession spread jolts in the village, and left the three young boys reeling in shock.
Now, the three minor boys are staring at an uncertain fate as they wonder where their next meal will come from. Immediate government help was demanded for the minor boys. PNN
