The Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC) Lumbini Province Office, Nepalgunj, and Advocacy Forum Nepal jointly conducted an on-site monitoring visit to Jayendu Child Reform Home in Asmanpur, Banke on November 3, 2025. During the monitoring, observations and fact collection were carried out regarding the condition of the correction home after the “Gen-Z Movement,” the status of basic rights of children in legal conflict, and institutional management aspects.
There are currently 161 boys in legal conflict residing in the child reform home. Apart from this, five boys are kept at the Area Police Office, Jamunaha–Banke, and nine boys are kept at the District Police Office, Banke. According to the Correction Home Chief, Kishor Sharma, the five boys in Jamunaha are kept for internal security reasons, and the nine boys at District Police Office are kept for security and investigation as they were involved in the incidents of vandalism and arson during the protests in the correction home. Even though the current residential capacity of the correction home is 120 children, more children than the capacity are currently accommodated there.
During the Gen-Z Movement, there were 228 boys in total at the correction home. Taking advantage of the movement, at around 1 PM on September 9, 115 children escaped in groups. Among them, 49 have been arrested/returned so far, while 66 are still absconding. Some children forcibly opened the main gate demanding that they should also be allowed to leave after seeing inmates from other correction homes and jails go outside. According to Chief Sharma, the escaped children were mainly from Kailali, Surkhet, Bardiya, and Dang districts.
Similarly, seven children who had absconded before the Gen-Z Movement are still out of contact, making a total of 73 children currently in absconding status, Sharma informed.
During the monitoring, it was found that correction home is compelled to accommodate children beyond its capacity. Delays in judicial procedures (late court hearings) and failure to receive timely appeal dates have resulted in difficulty for children to access legal facilities. Due to the non-cooperative attitude of courts towards remission of punishment, children engaged in correctional activities are deprived of legal relief. There is lack of skill-based training which would support children’s rehabilitation and self-reliance. There is also a lack of resources and means to ensure presence of children during court hearings. Issues exist in timely receipt of charge sheets and related documents. Although the court has issued a mandamus order in the name of Dudhuwa Rural Municipality to open a school inside the correction home, it has not been implemented yet. Chief Sharma further stated that the central authorities should allocate budget and resources based on the number of children.
Recently, the Government of Nepal has approved a staff nurse position in the correction home, enabling children to regularly receive psychosocial counseling services. Children are receiving their daily allowance regularly. Vegetables have been grown by the children in the available open land inside the correction home. Even though the government took over operations of the correction home earlier, improvements in management have now been observed. Previously, for security reasons, staff could not enter children’s living rooms, but now it has become possible to inspect the children’s rooms even during the evening. The children expressed to the monitoring team that the current situation is normal and the management is improving.
During the monitoring, suggestions were provided to concerned authorities, including the need to expand physical infrastructure and residential capacity of the correction home, ensure skill-based training for rehabilitation of children in legal conflict, initiate effective implementation of legal provisions regarding remission of punishment, continue psychosocial support services, strengthen coordination between the correction home and judicial bodies, operate the correction home in accordance with operational standards, and allocate resources based on the number of children.
The monitoring team comprised of Basanta Gautam from Advocacy Forum Nepal, Lumbini Province, Nepalgunj, and Tek Nath Acharya from the Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC) Nepalgunj.
Lumbini Province Office