Underprivileged Children Share Life Experiences Through SOA Community Radio

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Bhubaneswar: Fifteen underprivileged children visited SOA Community Radio 90.4 studio here recently, sharing their life experience and hope for a better future.

Excited about their first radio tour, the children spoke about the difficulties they faced in the street and their struggle for living a normal life with dignity. Bandhua Deogam, 15, narrated about his struggle with substance abuse and how he was able to kick the habit. He is now going to school.

Fifteen-year-old Laxmi Reddy, now studying in Class X had been working as a child labour while Kanha Singh, 12, was another drug addict who had managed to free himself from the fixation.

The children had a free-wheeling discussion with the anchors about a range of subjects including drug addiction, child marriage, sexual abuse and their exploitation as child labour. “It was circumstances and not by choice that we found ourselves in such situations,” one of the children said.

“Being part of such radio programs can help them explore their latent creativity,” said officer-in-charge of SOA Community Radio 90.4, Honey Patnaik, adding “through this medium we have been trying to help such children become better human beings.”

The radio tour was organised by ‘Ashayen Odisha’, an NGO working among street children.