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It is unfortunate that HIV infected children from rural background have been rendered homeless and have been forced to quit schools due to lack of sufficient funding needed for their education and care. Reportedly, dozens of HIV/AIDS victims of tender ages living at an NGO in Dhangadi, and as close to Kathmandu as Shivapuri have been left with no choice but to quit studies after foreign donor agencies stopped providing financial assistance to the NGO. As a result, Nava Kiran Plus (NKP), an NGO working for the welfare of the children, recently asked 18 children to leave its hostel in Dhangadhi. More disturbing is the fact that the remaining members of families of four of them have refused to accept the children as their parents died of HIV/AIDS long ago. It is heartbreaking to note that the children, after their displacement from the hostel, were compelled to sleep on the school ground and under the open sky in a nearby jungle. Similarly, 45 children staying at Shivapuri have also been asked to return to their respective villages next month after end of their final exam in April.



According to NKP, more than 20 of the 45 children living at its hostel in Shivapuri have nowhere to go. Worse still, about 50 percent of the children living at the hostels are undergoing Anti Retroviral Treatment (ART) along with balanced diet – both of which the families of the poor kids cannot afford. The critical question that has surfaced now is will the state step in to address the problem faced these children, aged between six and fifteen, or simply turns its blind eye?



We believe it is a serious issue that the government needs to take up with urgency and take concrete steps to demonstrate that it is committed to the welfare of the needy, especially HIV/ADIS infected children of the country. We have seen many programs in the periodic plans laid out for the welfare and development of children. Many of such programs have not been translated into action mainly due to apathetic attitude of the implementing agencies, wasting millions of rupees earmarked for child development. But, we think state should not remain indifferent to such situations. It will be utterly unjust to the needy children if the state fails to make timely intervention to ensure that these infected children are provided with food and shelter at once. All concerned agencies must come to the rescue of these innocent sufferers and extend all help and assistance possible. It is high time to show that we care.

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