Admn comes to the rescue of 4 abandoned siblings in Chamba

The Chamba Child Welfare Committee has stepped in to help four minor children from Matwar village under Bhajotra gram panchayat, who were found living in difficult conditions after being left to fend for themselves.

The children have been identified as Neesha Devi (17), Santosh Kumar (15), Meena Devi (11) and Arjun (8), all residents of Matwar village. Their father Jagir Singh died a few years back after which their mother remarried and reportedly abandoned them, leaving all four children without the parental support.

The situation came to the notice of the administration after a video of the children’s plight surfaced on social media. According to officials, the children were living in a temporary, kutcha house without adequate food, warm clothing or proper shelter, especially during the cold weather. The matter had earlier gone unnoticed at the village and departmental level.

After the video surfaced, the Child Welfare Committee visited the village and found that the children required care and protection. Subsequently, they were brought under the Vatsalya Sukh Ashray scheme, under which arrangements were made for their shelter, food, education and care. The administration has stated that all necessary steps will be taken to secure the children’s future.

Bhajotra gram panchayat secretary Chaman Sharma said that a house had earlier been sanctioned in the name of the children’s father. However, at the time of his death, the children were minors and, as per rules, the construction could not be carried out in their names. As a result, the family continued to live in a kutcha house.

Child Welfare Committee Chairman AK Marwah said after the matter came to their notice, the committee immediately met the children and initiated action to provide them benefits under government schemes. He said two of the children will be provided financial assistance of Rs 4,000 per month and efforts are underway to link all of them with other welfare schemes.