Probe ordered into assault of elderly inmates at Khurda shelter home

Khurda: Inmates of Asha Kiran Home at Jatni in Khurda district were shifted elsewhere following orders from the Collector after a video capturing torture of elderly inmates of the shelter home went viral on Thursday morning.
“Asha Kiran Home had 23 inmates. Out of them 12, who are mentally ill, have been shifted to Mission Ashram. The remaining 11, who are elderly persons, have been shifted to two ashrams in the district,” informed Khurda Block Welfare Extension Officer Biplab Keshari Samantaray.
In the video, Hemant Sastri, the caretaker of the shelter home, is seen assaulting few inmates with pliers. They were allegedly subjected to torture and not provided food regularly.
Besides shifting the inmates, the Collector ordered a probe into the matter after a city-based voluntary organisation approached him and demanded stern action against the caretaker.
Shastri, however, refuted the allegations and pleaded ignorance about the video.