A 13-year-old boy of Sundargarh district who was struggling for his survival along with his mother and sister and collecting plastic and polythene wastes from garbage for earning bread has recently got support from the State Government after his plight was featured in The Pioneer.
The Sundargarh district administration admitted him a hostel of a Government-run school where he will get education, lodging and boarding for free.
According to sources, the hapless boy, Sanjay Bag (13), his mother Suryakanti and sister Sanju of Basanti Colony in Kutra block of Sundargarh district are living very miserably. Sanjay’s father has been missing for long years.
Sanjay drags a trolley to a garbage dumping area by road in Kutra every day morning, accompanied by his mother Suryakanti. Both the son and mother duo searches plastic and glass bottles and polythene. After collecting them, they sell off the waste materials for a paltry income.
With the meager earning, they run their family. Sanjay has lot of interest towards studies. After few hours of work in morning, he goes to the Nodal School at Kutra. He studies in Class 8th. After coming back from school, Sanjay again goes with the trolley to collect the waste materials.
The plight of Sanjay and his family had been published in The Pioneer on October 9. Following this, Sundargarh Collector Surendra Kumar Meena had directed to the District Project Coordinator (DPC), SSA, Amulya Kumar Pradhan to provide support to Sanjay.
As per the direction of DPC, SSA, BRT of Kutra block Trilochan Singh contacted mother of Sanjay and offered her for Sanjay’s free education and boarding at the hostel of the Bargaon High School.