In Malkangiri, Odisha, a sad situation has come to light. A 15-year-old girl, a student at a state-run residential school, gave birth on the rooftop of her hostel just hours after taking her annual exams. The girl, who is in Class 10, was living at a school meant for children from scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
She has now been moved to a nearby hospital for care. The school’s headmaster, Ajit Madkami, stated that the warden and a nurse should be held responsible because they checked on the girls, but didn’t notice the girl was pregnant. “They come to the hostel once a week for health checks. I’m not sure how this happened,” he said.
The girl’s father was worried too. A teacher had called him to come to the school, and when he got there, he found out that his daughter had given birth. He mentioned that the girls usually stay in the hostel and don’t go home often. “How did no one know she was pregnant?” he asked.
Local police officer Pradosh Pradhan announced that they have filed a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and other laws concerning rape. They are working to arrest the man accused of the crime, who is 22 years old and from a nearby village.
In Odisha, there are over 158,000 girls studying in schools run by the state. Since 2010, 21 similar pregnancy cases have been reported, making this the first one in 2023.
To prevent these incidents, the state government has assigned 3,000 caregivers and 336 health workers to check on the students frequently. They are also conducting regular health check-ups. Strict rules are now in place so that no male person can enter the hostel without a woman present.
A 2021 report showed that many hostels lacked proper security and safety measures, with 70% having no boundary walls.
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