Bara, December 23:

Children from the Dom community studying in class 1 at Nepal Rastriya

Primary School at Chhotki Fulbariya of Balirampur VDC-9 in Bara district have threatened to drop out if they are not provided pigs as incentives.

Eight-year-old Nanak Malli said he had told his teacher that if he was not provided a pig, he would stop coming to school. A teacher Rakesh Pandey said that Malli and the rest of the Dom children told the teachers: “We are a pig-rearing community. Give us pigs by February next or we will stop attending school.”

Guardian of the Dom children Manai Malli and Dulari Malli said: “We have not asked for the pigs nor did we instigate the children to do so. It is possible that they made the demand because of the poverty in their homes. However, we also feel that the Nepal government should introduce schemes like in India for the economic uplift of Dalits.”

There are three Dom households in Balirampur VDC-8. Six students from these three households attend school. Teacher Pandey said he had somehow persuaded them to continue schooling. These six are the first Doms in the area to attend school.

Chief of the Bara Gramin Vikas Kendra Devendra Giri said that no one from the Dom community has passed SLC yet.