Journalist Damodar Neupane’s latest book, Karma: Sikaai ma Gahiriyeko Khadal, was discussed amid a programme held in Mahendranagar, earlier this week. Organised by Children’s Club Society and Readers’ Club, the event saw activists, scholars and children discuss the book and its significance in current times. 

The book (released in the Capital last October) is a collection of reflective essays that bring to the fore the condition of differently-abled children in Nepal. 

Speaking at the event, Surendra Ojha, chairperson of Readers’ Club, said the book changed his outlook on children, before noting, “I have always been sympathetic towards children and especially about the differently-abled. What struck me while I was reading the book is that there are still a lot of issues to learn about children, and how to take care of them, physically and psychologically.” 

Meanwhile, author Damodar Neupane reiterated that a lot needs to be changed on how we look at children. “The children are neglected and not properly taken care of. There is almost the least—almost nil—children-friendly area in the whole country. There are a host of things to be done in order to lead the children towards all-round development, for they after all are the future. Karma is my attempt to bring the issue to the fore, to the mainstream discourse.”