Sambalpur: How desperate people can get when they fail to make their ends meet? Believe it or not, a woman in Keutibahali village under Charmal panchayat here was forced to sell her baby girl just to construct a safe place to live in. Driven by abject penury, the mother of the child says, she had no other option because they do not own land, nor did she get an assurance of a house under the government scheme.
The ward member right away refused to make any provisions citing that it is not possible for us to avail a house as we do not belong to this place, Nalini Karna, the baby girl's mother has alleged.
The family now comprises the woman, her 3-year-old boy and her elderly mother-in-law. Her husband who is working as a daily wage labourer is away from home with four other sons. "Without a roof over the head, we took shelter under a tree. Every single day seemed worst for us. We know how difficult those days were, somehow we survived the unbearable cold and the devastating rains," her mother-in-law said.
"Some of the villagers came forward to help them. It was terrible to see them braving such harsh weather conditions. They did not even have proper clothes and food. Some days they managed with little food the villagers provided," said a woman of the village.
As per reports, the girl child was sold to Special Child Adoption Centre for Rs 15000 where she is being taken care of, and the amount the mother received was used in constructing a mud-house with an asbestos roof. "My mother-in-law gets 5 kg of rice every month, and we make a few more money by doing labour work in others' houses. We are not included in any other government scheme, so surviving has become tough," Nalini said.
"She never stayed at a single place, and if they decide to stay here permanently, I will talk to the BDO to make necessary arrangements. We also want to facilitate them with a house, and the government will decide accordingly what needs to be done and what can be done for them," assured Suprabha Pradhan, Charmal Sarpanch.
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