Mother dies, father abandons; child battles Thalassaemia major:2.5-year-old girl lacks documents; aunt asks, ‘How will bone marrow transplant happen’?

‘I adopted a baby girl. Her mother died. Father’s whereabouts are unknown. When she was 11 months old, doctors diagnosed her with Thalassemia Major. Since then, we have to take her to Indore hospital every 15 to 20 days for blood transfusions. A bone marrow transplant is the permanent cure. This will cost 25 to 30 lakhs. Treatment is not possible due to a lack of documents.’ This is the pain of Sangeeta and her husband Daryav Singh. They live in Mandana village of Shujalpur. They have adopted their brother Lakhan Singh’s daughter, Nakshathra. When she was two and a half months old, her mother died. Father’s whereabouts have been unknown for a year. After her mother’s death, she was adopted by her aunt. She somehow turned one year old. When she started falling ill frequently, Aunt Sangeeta and Uncle Daryav Singh took her to the hospital. After numerous tests, about a month later, it was discovered that she has Thalassemia. The girl is now two and a half years old, but she has no identity. She has neither Aadhar nor any other documents through which government help can be received. When the innocent child plays with her cow’s calf in the courtyard of the house, her happiness is worth watching. Dainik Bhaskar team reached the village. Here we talked to the girl’s aunt and uncle. Read the report… The day goes by, just taking care of the child
The child’s aunt, Sangeeta, says that my brother Lakhan left this child and went somewhere unknown. She has no one except us. I have two sons. When I brought her home, I felt I didn’t have a daughter. God completed our family by sending her. She was very small and used to cry a lot. My entire day would go by just taking care of her. Brother’s wedding took place in Ujjain. A daughter was born on August 29, 2023. Named her Nakshathra. This is the third child of a brother and a sister-in-law. She has two elder sisters. They live with their grandfather in Gujarat. When she was about two and a half months old, her sister-in-law fell ill. We got her a lot of treatment, but she couldn’t survive. She had heart problems. Aunt-Uncle Adopted
Lakhan’s sister Sangeeta and brother-in-law Dariyav adopted the baby. On April 6, 2024, Lakhan got the adoption deed notarised. Along with Dariyav, he went to Shajapur district headquarters and submitted applications to register Dariyav’s name as the child’s father in various offices, including the Women and Child Development Department. The offices kept postponing it, citing reasons like ‘system down’ or other issues. After this, Lakhan disappeared, leaving the village of Madana. Uncle says – Blood transfusion needed every 15 to 20 days
Sangeeta’s husband Daryav says that due to debt, Lakhan’s father and younger brother’s house was seized by the bank. The family members left the village. Lakhan’s two elder daughters, Mayuri and Palak, used to study in a government residential hostel; they were also taken by their grandfather Shivnarayan a few months ago. When Nakshathra was 11 months old, her health started deteriorating frequently. Doctors said that she is suffering from thalassemia. Since then, she has to be taken to Indore hospital every 15 to 20 days for a blood transfusion. Five thousand expense every month
Dariyav is a mason by profession. He has his own family, too. Whenever the girl needs blood, it costs more than five thousand rupees. He says that on August 19, 2025, he submitted an application at the Shajapur Collector’s office requesting financial help for the girl’s treatment, but till date he has received neither assistance nor any response. In the hope of treatment, Dariyav took the girl to a camp in Pratapgarh on August 24, 2025. Here, her Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) test was done. This test match was also done with her real sisters, Mayuri and Palak. The report came recently, which showed an HLA match with Palak. After this test, Palak is ready to donate bone marrow to her sister. This will also cost 25 to 30 lakh rupees. No documents in girl’s name
Now the biggest obstacle is documents. Daryav is not registered as the girl’s father on any papers. The biological father is missing, so the girl’s Aadhar card cannot be made. The bone marrow transplant process is stalled due to a lack of the father’s income certificate and other documents. Father’s income certificate and other documents are also required to apply for schemes like Coal India Company’s Thalassemia Child Care Scheme, Prime Minister’s Relief Fund and Chief Minister’s Voluntary Grant. Finally, Sangeeta says, “I have been nurturing her close to my heart since she was tiny”. Our child couldn’t get an Aadhar card, so she is not registered in the Ladli Laxmi scheme. We couldn’t even get a disability pension card.” Dariyav says, “We want to become her legal parents on paper. Only with help from the government and society can this child survive. We need support from both the government and society for her treatment.” Women and Child Development Officer Sanjay Tripathi said they will call the concerned persons and try to help, but no documents have been received yet.