Who did Italian job on Preetmandir?

Who did Italian job on Preetmandir?

By: Kaumudi Gurjar Date: 2010-11-02 Place: Pune

Online appeal in Italian on popular social networking site asks for donations of 1.5 euros to feed children in city orphanage.

If an appeal on a social networking website is successful, Italians will soon be pitching in to feed the 131 children housed at Preetmandir.

An appeal on a social networking site asks for a donation of 1.5 euros ( about Rs 92) for the children at Preetmandir. The appeal is written in Italian.

MiD DAY contacted State Women and Child Development Department, which said the children at Preetmandir were not hungry and were being properly taken care of by the staff under District Women and Child Development Officer Vijay Taware's guidance.

Harish Rathore, deputy commissioner of Women and Child Development Department, said: "I have received the links of the social networking site where claims are being made that the children at Preetmandir are hungry."

Rathore called the propaganda a sham and said the reports about children not being fed properly were untrue.

"Some 20 days ago, Women and Child Development officers had visited Preetmandir. After inspection, a report was submitted to the Commissioner of Women and Child Development. We did not find cases of malnutrition at Preetmandir," Taware said.

Preetmandir Managing Trustee D P Bhatia said: "It is true that we go by donations and we do not receive government grants. But it's totally untrue that there is hunger; children here are not hungry. We have enough rations and food and the children here are properly taken care of."