india

Updated: Jul 04, 2019 10:31 IST

A three-year-old girl, who lost her family in a bus accident in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar, will be taken care of financially and socially for “a secure and healthy childhood”, Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik has announced.

Adeeba’s parents and two brothers were killed in the accident in Kishtwar on Monday. At least 31 other people also died when the overloaded minibus skidded off a winding road and fell into a deep gorge in the mountainous Kishtwar district.

The girl is undergoing treatment in the Government Medical College and Hospital in Jammu. She has injuries on her head, face and legs.

The governor has announced Adeeba, whose father was a labourer, will get Rs 2 lakh as a solatium from the Regional Red Cross, which will be put in a bank as fixed deposit.

“Beyond this human gesture, Hon’ble Governor has also announced monthly assistance of Rs 1200 per month, for the next 15 years, to be credited in the account of the girl child. This assistance will be over and above the normal ex-gratia compensation announced by the Government,” a release from Malik’s office said.

It also said that Kishtwar’s additional deputy commissioner will act as Adeeba’s local guardian till she is an adult.

“The girl child, Ms. Adeeba, shall also be rendered social and financial assistance through the Integrated Child Protection Scheme. District Administration, in consultation with civil society, shall ensure that a permanent caregiver shall also be identified for her upbringing in a healthy, conducive and amenable environment,” the release added.

The little girl’s plight has gone viral on social media and many have come forward to adopt the child.

Social activist Mohinderjeet Singh said adoption laws in the country are cumbersome and the administration should do everything possible for the child to get adopted and ensure that she was raised properly.

“Who will take her responsibility? I squarely blame the insensitive administration, which has orphaned this child. Now, it becomes the responsibility of the administration to shoulder the responsibility of this little soul,” he said.