Harichandanpur: With their father dead and mother having married another person, six kids are struggling for survival at Baladipali village of Tangiriapal panchayat under this block in Keonjhar.
The kids reportedly starve most of the time while the eldest one (13-year old girl) has to look after her five siblings with much difficulty. However, neither the administration nor any NGO has come to their rescue.
They live under a dilapidated thatched house that poses constant dangers to their lives. Walls of their house have collapsed. According to reports, their father Rajendra Dighi died four years ago. Six months later, Menji Dighi, their mother, abandoned her children and went with another man.
Since then, the kids have been facing hardship. The thatched house has been in such a bad shape that it may collapse anytime, locals feared.
They said during rain, they take shelter in neighbours’ houses. Budha, their male sibling, takes care of the brood when their elder sister Jamuna goes to other district in search of work. The boy takes care of cooking and feeds his siblings — Suresh, Jaguram, Kande and Ranjan.
Jamuna, the bread earner of the family, said as her earnings are too meager, she has left Suresh and Jaguram in the house of a relative in Jhumpura.
Jamuna goes out for work Monday and returns Saturday. Most of the time, the villagers take care of the children. Locals said it is unfortunate that the administration has not come to the help of kids who are waging a struggle for survival. PNN
