133 orphanages operating illegally

Lalitpur, August 4:

Out of 454 children’s homes in the country, 133 are being run illegally, according to a report.

All 133 homes were operating without getting officially registered, stated the Children’s Home Monitoring Report prepared by the Central Child Welfare Board (CCWB). The report was released today amidst a function. Out of 133 illegally-run homes, 32 are based in Kathmandu, 29 in Lalitpur, 11 in Kaski, seven in Chitwan, four in Bhaktapur and the remaining 50 in other districts.

The homes have been providing shelter to a total of 11,969 children, including 6,698 boys and 5,271 girls. Of them, only 754 go to schools. CCWB executive director Dharma Raj Shrestha said 43.61 per cent of the children’s homes were found not meeting minimum standards to run homes for orphan or destitute children.

Only 37 districts in the country have children’s homes, it is learnt.