Help comes as Diwali gift for shoeshine boy
The district administration, college lecturers and a non-government organisation came forward to help the family of a Class 4 boy who dropped out of school to start polishing shoes after his father died of jaundice about four months ago.
Hindustan Times published a report on October 1 about 10-year-old Rohit
Singh Jatav who took up his father’s job to earn bread for his mother, brother and two sisters. The family of four lives in a room at ward 34 of Bharatpur Municipal Corporation.
“I have ordered the district head of the social welfare and justice department to provide government assistance to the boy and his family under the government’s child development schemes. A toilet will be built in their house under the Swachh Bharat Mission,” Bharatpur district collector Narendra Kumar Gupta said.
BHARATPUR:
“After the collector’s order, we met the family of the boy to provide help. Pension will be given to the children under the Palanhar scheme,” said Kartar Singh Meena, district officer of the department.
“A pension ₹1,000 to each child above 5 years and under 18, ₹500 for his brother under 5 years, and ₹500 for his mother under the widow pension scheme will be given.”
A team of Lupin Human Welfare and Research Foundation will visit the boy’s family to provide help. “We will offer them financial aid and are planning to help the boy continue his education. All facilities for his (Rohit’s) education will be provided,” foundation director Sitaram Gupta Gupta said.
Anil Kumar Nagar, an economics lecturer at the government college, Deeg, provided the family kitchen appliances, grocery and study material.
Arvind Verma, a political science lecturer at Maharani Shri Jaya government college, said he would give Rs 2,000 every month to the boy and get him admitted in a private school.
Members of the Rajasthan Shikshak Sangh (Ambedkar) offered financial help for the boy and his siblings to continue their studies.
“Administrative officials and people are approaching us to offer financial help and food items after reading my boy’s news in HT,” said Rohit’s mother Sunita Devi, who is illiterate and her health conditions do not permit her to do a job. “Our family will now celebrate Diwali; earlier we were not in a position to celebrate any festival due to our critical financial condition,” Rohit said.