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Dubai: Efforts are on to admit Budhia Singh, the wonder kid who ran 65km in seven hours, to a boarding school, said a senior official from the Dubai-based Koohiji Group which set up a trust fund to secure the boy's future.
The group wants to get Budhia enrolled into a good boarding school to save him from being further exploited.
The Koohiji Group had sent up a trust fund of Dh150,000 last year for the education and welfare of the five-year-old Budhia. Budhia and his trainer Biranchi Das were in Dubai last year during the official announcement of the trust fund by the Koohiji Group.
On Monday, Das was arrested in India following a complaint lodged by Budhia's mother Sukanti. Das has been charged with wrongful restrain, voluntarily causing hurt and obscene acts.
"Das never saw the funds. He wanted to access the funds to renovate the roof of the judo association owned by him and at other times he wanted to purchase a car for Budhia's mobility," said S.S. Rajkumar, vice-chairman of the group. "
It could also be that Das was not fully aware of the trust fund clauses. We are not in a position to point an accusing finger on the integrity of the trainer. The sole beneficiary of the fund is Budhia. No one can access the funds put in a bank in Mumbai. The trustees are eminent personalities from Mumbai," he said.
Budhia, who has three other siblings, lives in Bhubaneshwar, east Indian state of Orissa. His father died in 2004. Driven by poverty, his mother sold him for Indian rupees 800 (about Dh72).
Budhia's ability to run long distance caught the attention of Das who took him under his wings by paying off the man whom he was sold to by his mother.
Rajkumar said: "We definitely admire Budhia for coming forward to reveal the truth. The fund is intact and irrevocable. We favour the option of offering Budhia the opportunity to attend a good boarding school as this will take care of his physical wellbeing as well as provide him with an education.
"Neither his mother, nor his coach misused the funds as it is governed by trusteeship laws."
The group is trying to find ways to establish a link with Budhia and his mother. This is because both mother and son can only converse in Oriya, a regional language spoken in Orissa.
"He was under the care of Das who spoke Hindi, but now with Budhia given back to his mother we are trying to get someone who could serve as a link between us and the boy," said Rajkumar.
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