Bhawanipatna: Kasturi, an icon of motherly love

Bhawanipatna: Mother's Day was celebrated befittingly in Jashoda ashram, an orphanage in Gambhariguda village near Dharamgarh Sub divisional headquarter of Kalahandi by persons of different walks of life. Visitors brought gifts to the inmates and also took the opportunity to felicitate Kasturi Jal, wife of the head of the ashram Shyamsundar Jal.

Kasturi Jal (58) got married at 18 in 1983 and came to the house of her in-laws in Gambhariguda. She was shocked to find five toddlers in the house. Shyamsundar Jal picked up the abandoned newborn girls from the roadside. As a newlywed bride she initially could not accept this reality. But motherly love in her pushed her to accept this reality. She decided to assist him to nurse the girls and the march continued.

When the number of children increased in 1986 her husband named their small hut, Jasoda Ashram, in the name of her mother-in-law. As the number of inmates increased in 2002 it was registered. Shayasundar Jal, a good Samaritan, is now a recognised social activist and honoured for his social bravery by different organisations of the State and country.

She lends a helping hand to him and unwittingly turned into mother of these helpless children devoting her entire time for the cause. Now they have 63 children with them. Twelve boys and 35 girls have already married and settled.

But Kastury is silently continuing her role of real Jasoda by nursing, giving motherly love and bringing up the destitute children regularly joining the ashram. She is the mother of all and rightly addressed by the destitute as 'Ma'.