monalisa patsani
post news network
Bhubaneswar, June 15: Raja festival is special for every Oriya, young or old, and all await the festival to have some fun with friends and family. While the lucky ones get to celebrate the day with their near and dear ones, there are sections of people that are generally denied these simple joys of life.
Of course, there are some noble souls who also see to it that these sections are not left out of the enjoyment.
Inmates of Mohini Pramila Old Age Home received a share of such kindness this Raja. Age and conditions at the old age home were preventing the inmates of the old age home from delights such as homemade pithas, special raja paan and the joy of swings.
Ramanath Naik, the proprietor of the old age home named after his grandmothers, says he makes special arrangements for inmates of the home every year. “They, too, deserve to be happy. They are unlucky that they are far away from their children but that doesn’t mean they have to grieve during festivals, too. There are 11 inmates in the home. Every year they celebrate the day in a grand manner and this year too I made similar arrangements for them,” he said.
Ramanath was a tad worried this year because he was short on finances. Considering their age we have to take care of their health above most other things. Many of them are bedridden. We have enjoyed the festival with those who can walk. When I saw some inmates playing on swings and singing, it gave me a lot of joy,” Ramanath said.
Age was not a barrier for inmates of Jeevan Jyoti Ashram, an orphanage. Dressed in new clothes the inmates celebrated each moment with much glee. Besides relishing festival delicacies, they engaged in dance competitions and traditional games.
“The children were given new clothes. Raja is very special for girls, so girls were also dressed in the traditional way with kumkum, aalta and the like. Special food items were made for them along with traditional pithas. During the three days, we are organsing different activities,” Prafulla Senapati, the secretary of the orphanage, said.