Kailali: Children belonging to the disappearing caste, Raji, have started going school to obtain education.

The school enrollment of children from the backward caste has increased with elevated level of awareness in course of the passage of time.

The Raji caste people, who have had no alternative source than the traditional occupation to sustain their livelihood, now have realized that they are lagging behind due to lack of education.

Now they are aware of sending their children for school education after various programmes have been executed in their settlement on the initiative of different organizations, said Dabal Bahadur Raji, a local of Lalbojhi-6.

It is stated that the population of Raji caste in the VDCs including Chaumala, Khailad, Lalbojhi, Patharaiya, Sugarkhal, Masuriya and Tikapur of the district is 3,000.

Around 30 students belonging to Raji community have passed the School Leaving Certificate (SLC) from various schools in the district, said Raji community leader Dal Bahadur Raji.

The Raji people have started sending their children with the establishment of schools in every village, he further said.

The enrollment has increased when various organizations working in this field provided educational support to the children of minority caste, he added.

Sumitra Raji, an 11th grader in Mahunyal higher secondary school, Bhajani said, ‘Being convinced that the education is key to increase awareness, I have been advocating for the enrolment of Raji children for school education’.

More than 500 Raji children of seven VDCs and two municipalities are acquiring school education, according to the data maintained by a local organization namely Janautthan Samaj Sanstha Lalbojhi.

source: The Himalayan Times, 23 Nov 2011