Karnataka’s COVID orphans rebuild their lives with hope and resilience

233 COVID-19 orphans in Karnataka, incl. 116 girls, have lost parents; 4 in childcare institutions; 60 turned 18 last month; 15 more by end of yr. Harshita & Kumar T., Lasya N. Gowda, Syed Altamash & Javeriya Arfath, Hemanth M., Shifana M.M. are among them. Govt. provides benefits, but philanthropy needed to rebuild their lives.

The house of 16-year-old Harshita T. and 14-year-old Kumar T. — with peeling paint and plastic and flex sheets covering part of the roof, which lets sunlight stream through — seems to reflect the storm of emotions they have weathered. The story of the siblings at Gonurukoppa village of Malur taluk in Kolar district, Karnataka, is one of tragedy, tenacity, and hope.

While their mother had died when they were toddlers, they lost their father to COVID-19 in May 2021. Now, it is their maternal aunt, Kala H.N., who is trying her best to give them a home within her limited means. The siblings find solace in this shared space, but life is a delicate balance between navigating the challenges of adolescence and grappling with the loss of parents. Harshita is studying in her first year of pre-university (class XI) and aspires to become a teacher, while her younger brother wants to pursue a career in hardware engineering.

The siblings are among the 233 children, including 116 girls, who were left orphaned during the pandemic in Karnataka. Four of these children are in childcare institutions because they have no guardians. While 60 children turned 18 last month, over 15 more will do so by the end of this year. 

Harshita carries memories of her father, while Lasya N. Gowda in P. Chittanahalli village of Mandya district lost her mother, Mamata, just two days after she was born on May 11, 2021. Her father, Nanjundegowda, had also succumbed to the infection a fortnight before his wife’s death. The bubbly toddler, who has just joined an anganwadi there, is cared for by her maternal uncle and grandmother. She is unaware of the tragedy her life has already seen.

Manju C.L., her uncle, says, “My sister and brother-in-law were childless for 10 years. Finally, they had a baby. But they are not alive to see her grow. Lasya is everything for us now. Her paternal uncles have approached the court seeking her custody.”

Vedavatamma, Lasya’s aanganwadi teacher, is full of praise for the toddler. “She is very active and enjoys the company of other children,” she says.

In Hyderi Nagar in Mulbagal town, another set of siblings — Syed Altamash, 17, and Javeriya Arfath, 14 — are reconstructing their lives in the aftermath of the loss of their parents, who died on the same day during the first wave in August 2020. While their mother, who was under treatment, died in hospital, their father developed severe breathing problems at home after he got his wife admitted in a hospital. He died the same day and later tested positive for COVID-19.