The inmates of the Korak Juvenile Home. Picture by Biplab Basak

Jalpaiguri, Oct. 14: The sound of loudspeakers coming from the nearby pandals and the noise of fire-crackers tell Mrinal that Durga puja has begun.

For the eight-year-old inmate of Korak Juvenile Home, there is no scope for “Devidarshan” as the law does not permit him to participate in the festivities like other children their age.

The inmates, cut off from society, enjoy the puja only within the boundaries of the home for the law has restricted them from going out.

Says Mrinal: “We have no way to go out. The puja days are just like any other day. We do not feel anything special except the noise coming from the nearby puja pandals and the sound of crackers.”

Mrinal and his friends, about 15 in number who are staying in the home, do not get the chance of going out, watching the pandals and tuck into delicacies.

Mrinal and his friends, the boys who are staying in the home, are either accused of committing some crime or have been rescued by the police. They are now residents of the home where they have been kept so they can be reformed.

They are also deeply saddened when they see boys of the other group, the orphans who find accommodation here are being taken out by the guards and other staff members for a tour of the puja pandals whereas they need to stay back in the home.

“We feel very sad. They go out but we are not allowed. That is why after one or two years, we try to forget the days and wish that they pass on quickly,” said Sanjoy, another inmate.

The boys recalled their old days. “I used to spend these days with the family members and friends. Visiting pandals, having phuchkas, bhelpuri, bursting crackers. But now, I just have those old memories,” says 14-year-old Jiban, who has been here for three years.

The superintendent of the home Prasanta Barua said his hands were tied.

“I have nothing to do. The boys who are staying here as per the order of the court are not allowed to go outside the campus. Thus they could not go out even during the pujas. As far as the other boys are concerned, they are taken out in the puja under our supervision.”

Thus the dreams of Mrinal, Sanjoy, Jiban to watch and enjoy puja ends within the boundary walls of the home who share old memories and wait for their friends to return so that they can get an idea from the tales they tell of the Durga Puja which, to them, is just a lingering memory of the past. “I aspire for the day when my parents will come and take me away. Then I can enjoy the puja,” says Jiban, with a sparkle of hope in his eyes as he watches the colourful crackers bursting in the night sky.