Two Tribal Women Rescue & Ensure Upbringing Of Abandoned Divyang Girl Child In Odisha’s Malkangiri

Malkangiri: Two tribal women not only rescued a divyang girl child abandoned by her parents but also ensured her upbringing by district authorities in Odisha’s Malkangiri.

The women, Manguli Majhi and Sukaldei Hantal of Chitrakonda, catch fish from the local reservoir and sell those to earn their livelihood. As per their routine, they were fishing in Chitrakonda reservoir five days back when they heard a child crying.

They went to the bank of the reservoir in their country boat following the sound of the cry. On reaching the bank, they found the girl child sitting alone under a tree and crying. As the two women did not find anybody around, they searched around the forest and shouted for some time but nobody turned up.

The women could not know anything from the child as she could not speak. They also realised that she was physically challenged as she could not walk though she was around four years of age. They finally took a decision and brought the child with them to their home.

The two women took care of the child as per their capacity. On Monday, they came to know about public hearing being conducted by district collector and came to the venue in Malkangiri with the child.

On hearing the entire incident from the two women, district collector Sachin Pawar took the matter seriously and directed chief district medical officer (CDMO) and district child protection officer to take proper care of the child.

District child protection officer Narayan Das told the media that they had no information about the parents of the child nor she was able to say anything about her village or address.

“On the basis of the statements of the two women, who had rescued the child, we have filed a missing case in the police station. We will take the child to a childcare institution for differently abled children. She will be taken care there until we make arrangement for her adoption as per government regulations,” he said.