A poor orphan girl who lost her parents due to cancer at an early age was denied her original pass certificate by the council of High Secondary Education (CHSE) for the last 20 years. As a result, the hapless girl could neither apply for any job nor avail any benefits under the Government schemes.
In a petition to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the victim highlighted her plight and demanded Rs 20 lakh as compensation from the Government, besides a permanent job against the harassment meted out to her.
Arati Sahoo, the victim girl of Jajpur district, struggled hard to get higher education. She was so poor that she had to go for begging on street to arrange money to read in Plus II. She had appeared in the Plus II arts exam at the Santose Panda Women’s College at Dhusuri in Bhadrak in 1997. But as she could not get her certificate from the CHSE, she failed to apply for the post of an Anganwadi worker.
“The grievance redressal is a mere farce in the State Higher Education Department. The authorities shed crocodile’s tear for the plight of the poor and underprivileged,” lamented Sahoo.