But his life took a turn for the better after Smile Nepal, a non government organization, rescued him along with other six street children and rehabilitated them.
Raju had fled from his house in Chitwan at the age of five. He is now been working as a waiter at Around the Corner Restaurant in Maharajgunj. "Drugs ruined my life. But proper counseling at the rehabilitation center gave me a sense of purpose," he said amid a function organized by Smile Nepal in collaboration with Hotel Annapurna in the capital on Wednesday.
Sujan Subba, another drug addicted street child who was rehabilitated along with Adhikari said, "I had thought I would live in the streets all my life. But I was wrong. I can also lead a normal life like others and serve society." He now works as a dance teacher at Sathi Sanstha, a non government organization. Proper counseling and rehabilitation can save hundreds of street children who are into drugs and help them find a purpose in their life.
Smile Nepal has rehabilitated a total of seven street children with the help of various Nepali donor organizations. "But all street children have not been as lucky. So, by rescuing some street children and rehabilitating them in society, we are mounting pressure on the government to come up with a policy to rehabilitate street children and help them lead a normal life," said Salina Tamrakar, office manager of Smile Nepal.
Currently, there are around 1,000 street children in the capital, according to various non-government organizations working for the welfare of children. Though scores of NGOs have been set up professedly to work for the welfare of helpless kids, the street children continue to suffer as usual.
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