Odisha Girl Set On Fire: In yet another tragic incident, a minor girl allegedly set herself on fire in Odisha’s Bargarh district and is said to be in a critical condition. This is the fourth such incident within a month, hinting at a troubling trend in the state.
Police said on Monday that the incident took place at Phiringmal village, which falls within the Gaisilat police station. According to a PTI report, the 13-year-old girl was rescued by villagers from a playground. The girl was found in a half-burnt condition and was rushed to the Bargarh district hospital. According to the doctors, the condition of the girl is stated to be critical.
Past Instances
Earlier on July 19, tragedy struck in Odisha’s Puri district when a 15-year-old girl suffered severe burn injuries, covering more than 75% of her body. She was rushed to AIIMS in New Delhi, but despite two weeks of treatment, she passed away on August 2. Initially, reports suggested that three unidentified men had waylaid her and set her on fire, sparking nationwide outrage. The case took an unexpected turn when police later said no one else was involved. The Odisha Crime Branch is now handling the investigation, which comes just days after another shocking incident — a college student’s self-immolation at Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Balasore.
Before that, a 20-year-old girl student set herself on fire on her college campus on July 12. The girl alleged that she was harassed by her professor and her repeated complaints were ignored. The girl died on July 14. The girl was doing a Bachelor’s in Education at the Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Balasore district. She set herself on fire outside the principal’s office, alleging inaction over her repeated complaints about sexual harassment by a college teacher.
Opposition Slams BJP
The Congress party has slammed the Odisha BJP government saying that the state had become entirely unsafe for women with an average of 15 rapes taking place every day. The party said that the Odisha government had itself admitted that 28,000 incidents of crime against women and children had been reported during the last eleven months. The BJD has also questioned the BJP government over rise in crime against women in the past few months.
Odisha Government’s Action
Amid rising crime against women, the Odisha government has announced a new initiative, Shaktisree, aimed at ensuring the safety of girl students in colleges and universities across the state. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi made the announcement in Bhubaneswar last month. The programme will cover all 16 state universities and 730 government and aided colleges under the Higher Education Department. The move comes in the wake of the recent self-immolation of a girl student at FM College in Balasore, allegedly over harassment by a faculty member.
