On Wednesday morning, 19 children were having lunch—the humble dal-bhat-tarkari—in the dining hall of the hostel operated by the All Nepal Football Association in Satdobato, Lalitpur.

“We used to provide them with meat daily,” said Hira Pant, ANFA’s hostel in-charge. “Now, these children have to go to their school and sleep after eating only rice and lentils, not even vegetables.”

For the young academy players, the ANFA Complex in Lalitpur was supposed to be a place of refuge and recovery. The 19 children were relocated here two months ago, carrying the trauma of a tragedy that shook Nepali sports.

Until September 28, 2024, they had been living at the football academy in Sisneri, Makawanpur. That fateful day, six of their friends died in a landslide while fleeing their hostel building out of fear of rising floodwaters as the Kulekhani dam opened following heavy rain. The children were then relocated to Hetauda before they were brought to Satdobato.

While the six deceased children’s families are still awaiting a proper probe into the incident, those who survived want to carry their friends’ dreams as well. But they find themselves in a difficult situation, as there is not even a proper diet to sustain them.

“The breakfast menu had items like milk, eggs, cornflakes, muesli and sausage, among other protein-rich items,” Pant said. “The menu has been stripped down to black tea and plain biscuits for almost a month now.”

Why are children who were selected from across the country through ANFA’s grassroots programme being treated like this?

ANFA officials say the problem is a result of the FIFA suspension and the directive of the National Sports Council not to use their bank accounts for “any” purpose.

“Following the suspension, the National Sports Council issued a directive, instructing us to halt all activities and financial transactions,” said Suresh Shah, ANFA’s spokesperson. “As a result, our usual vendors—including suppliers like Salesberry—have stopped providing goods on credit.”

Alongside the 19 children, the hostel houses national team players recovering from injuries sustained in Bhutan.

Kantipur reached the ANFA Complex again in the evening, after the students returned from their school. The young athletes looked far from energetic. They needed permission to speak, but they all looked confused, probably questioning themselves of their choices.

Having already endured the trauma of losing six of their peers in the Sisneri landslide, being undernourished in a place meant to nurture their dreams has left a visible toll on them. With their daily routine stripped of basic athletic nutrition and their futures caught in an administrative gridlock between ANFA, the NSC and FIFA, the young players are left navigating an uncertainty far bigger than football.

So, how long does ANFA plan to let the children suffer?

“You would be better off directing this question to the government, because the answers lie with them,” Shah, the ANFA spokesperson, said. “In truth, ANFA has no leverage or control over the situation right now.”

Shah added that they are still fulfilling their duties by preparing for the U15 World Cup qualifiers. “We believe the government recognises the urgency,” he said. “Our understanding is that once the suspension is lifted, operations will resume in full force.”

Shah added that ANFA officials and executive members have been paying out of their pockets to buy the basic food and other items. “We have started buying from some other shops on credit,” Shah said. “We are even paying for water, which costs around Rs2,000 a tanker, every day.”

It is not only the children who have been affected. Pant, her employees, security guards and other officials have also been working without salary for a couple of months.

Amid this, Pant is handling the situation with quiet resignation. “We are continuing our work only to ensure that these children are not left abandoned,” she said.