The story of the street side children in Kamla Nagar

I went to Delhi in the year 2013 for further studies. There I saw the multitude of people, not only delhites but people from all corners of India and from abroad too. But what i failed to see were the children in my neighborhood. The ones who wear tattered clothes and roam around in the blistering heat of the day and have to go through the night without a blanket on them. Some go around selling things. Things like balloons, others stickers and some begging for some money.

I remember one such incident. I was going back to my PG and two boys came to me and said

"Bhaiya, weight napwaoge kya?" (Brother, need to get your weight checked?)

And I said I couldn't because I didn't have change then, and I didn't have it. What crossed my mind was that I will go to my PG and eat, although not that delicious, food but these kids are our here and they might have had nothing to eat. They sit there in the sun, working on their notebooks doing questions of maths, English, Science etc. They might have the will to study and they might be good at it, but will they be able to do what they dream about. There is another incident that I remember of. My friend showed me a video that he himself had made as a part of his class project. In that video he was interviewing a small kid who sold different things and in came an old man and started slapping them in front of the camera. He ordered the children to leave.

Many things have gone wrong and many continue to. There is what we call a "cost-benefit" analysis in which we compare the costs and the profit of a commodity. The benefits that we reap today, of globalization, privatization and industrialization, will bear a cost, not today but in the future, for which we wont be able to pay. We need to get a hold of our current future, these small children. Our Future.

How can we get the goodness out

I have lived in Delhi for a year now. It is a city full of people caring much about themselves and less about others. I have seen people living under skyscrapers. Nothing to eat and less to wear. The small children lost in the traffic. Small infants in clinging to the breasts of their mothers crying for something. Their mothers giving no heed to them. These small children dream, of bigger things in life than just living by the roadside looking at the sun rise and then go down. They want more from us. Not money, but a little affection from us.

Giving clothes or books, which they might not be able to read, is not the end and we should not stop here. To tell you the truth, giving clothes or toys is just a temporary fix to an everlasting problem. Clothes are materialistic, to show someone your affection is hard and lives and dies with that person. What is better for a child, the warmth of the clothes we give him or the wisdom that he can use for a lifetime? Tricky question though, it is answerable. These small children don’t know what half of the things mean. They sell products that they are told to sell. They take the wrong path and end up either in jail or a correctional center. That is their life and it will remain so until unless we help them. And giving something materialistic is not going to do the job.

What my point is that there are many children who need a helping touch. But more than that, hey need to know that it was not only a touch but a hand that is holding on to them forever, and that hand will never let go of you. More than money we need compassion, we need to find ways to feed the hungry and to help them understand that if they have dreams and they want to achieve them, they have to work hard for them. No one is going to give them a golden platter in this ruthless and cunning world. We are the masters of our own soul and the helper of one selves.

The Bruises and the Chalk

He was beaten. Everyday.
He rebelled, he tried to stop it, he pushed his drunk father away. But he was slapped one more time, he was pushed across the table one more time, he was punched one more time.
And then came the time of just letting it all go. He faced the punches, he faced the slaps. He just sat there, doing nothing. He stopped fighting it, and he let the pain hurt him. The pain damaged him emotionally more than it did physically.

This was his story every night. The lantern was switched off and it was dark. At 2 in the night, he would be woken up by a slap. His father picked him up from the shoulders and beat him. His mother never came inside the room, too scared or a part of his father's plan.

But every morning, he got up. He got up and cleaned himself as best he could, and he went to work. He was a ten year old working boy with bruises all over his body. All day, he would look forward to those ten minutes. The ten minutes when the forty year old woman would come and buy icecreams for around fifteen children his age.

That day, she noticed. She saw all those bruises and scratches and she pulled him aside. She enquired as to what happened. He kept shut, he never told about his alchoholic father and his ignorant mother to anyone. She asked him a few more times, but he kept mum. There was a look on his face that pulled the woman towards him. That look portrayed his resentment, his dejection, his vulnerability, his bravery.

And so she got him pulled out of the measly construction site and brought him to the park with her. The next day, she got him a blackboard and a chalk - the best things he would ever come across. And she gave him alphabets, then words, then sentences. She gave him knowledge with not only words, but also with crafts, and with music and dance.

Till the age of seventeen, he would hurl through the torture at night, wake up every morning, and go to the park. And he would smile. The woman started getting a first aid kit since he was eleven. She wanted to report his father a lot of times, but he never allowed it. He wanted to do this on his own.

Now, at the age of forty three, he is a teacher, he is a provider of education. And he went to her funeral just yesterday and thanked her for the blackboard and the chalk.

Mid Day Meal Scheme

In 1925, a Mid Day Meal Program was introduced for disadvantaged children in Madras Municipal Corporation. By the mid 1980s three States viz. Gujarat, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and the UT of Pondicherry had universalized a cooked Mid Day Meal Program with their own resources for children studying at the primary stage By 1990-91 the number of States implementing the mid day meal program with their own resources on a universal or a large scale had increased to twelve states. That was mid day meal in the past, now mid day meal is the largest school feeding program feeding up to 12 crore children in 12 lakh schools across the country.This is an achievement itself for us and the Indian Govt and for India.
Many children who did not go to schools before and now enrolling in these schools where free mid day meal is provided. This shows us the extent to which poverty in India ha gone up. The worst hit are children as they are not able to live a normal lifestyle. Schooling is an important part of every bodies life. This same education is a dream for the underprivileged  children. But, thanks to Mid day meal scheme, the enrollment, retention and attendance of children in these school has gone up. Kids who were malnourished before are now eating healthy food. Earlier children who came to school came hungry as there was not enough to eat in their homes. Now they go back home from school with a full tummy. This has encouraged children to go to school and learn and educate themselves with the help of the teachers. It has also helped children to improve socialization amongst different castes.
I remember when i was in school, my friends used to eat their tiff-ins in the class only when the lecture was going on. They never went hungry because they had their tiff-in and could eat from it anytime they wanted to. But some kids don't have this kind of luxury as they don't have much to eat.

Poverty: A curse to India

India is one of the poorest countries in the world. It isn't just psychological

poverty or emotional poverty. It isn't just social poverty or religious and

cultural poverty. It is an absolute poverty. It involves poverty in every

aspect of life.

It is known how people continue to die from absolute poverty and hunger

in India despite numerous efforts to help fight poverty in the world. . Since

1991, India has undergone a great deal of liberalisation internally and

externally, but its benefits have mostly gone to the middle and upper

classes.

India like any other developing country is crippled by so many problems.

For example, India's population growth rate is increasing by the day putting

pressure on the limited resources and leaving many Indians in absolute

poverty. India is very poor in terms of education, in terms of economic

improvement, infrastructure, health care, etc.

But the question still remains the same. We never notice people around us.

We don’t know under what conditions the poor are living.

They lack adequate housing and sanitary facilities along with other issues

put our poor families at great risk for disease and disability. Prescription

drugs and hospitalization is expensive. Many must choose between food for

their children and medicine for themselves.

It is very common for a poor family to have no more than a hole in the

ground surrounded by plastic sheeting for a toilet. There may be a well on

the property but it cannot be used for drinking - only for washing. Drinking

water must be fetched from the nearest municipal water spigot which may

mean a long walk for a family.

Standing water and open drainage and sewer ditches breed disease

bearing mosquitoes. Diseases such as malaria, felagia, degue and others

are a constant with the poor. Closer to home, most of the poor use palm

fronds or wood scraps for the cooking stoves. The smoke is thick in the air

in the villages and can be choking in the small, unventilated huts. Many of

our poor, especially the children, suffer from asthma and other respiratory

conditions.

 Depression, anxiety and other nervous conditions are not uncommon

problems among the poor. The sense of hopelessness and abandonment

weigh heavily upon the poor. It is especially difficult if the children suffer

from the debilitation of depression as it adversely affects their schoolwork.

support their children and see them grow.

Children are taken out of school at a very young age (and that’s if they ever

went to school) and forced to work to support their families. You will see

the tiniest of children picking through huge rubbish piles extracting plastic

bottles, dragging out rags, flies buzzing, horrendous working conditions for

any mortal .

Girls barely in their teens are forced into prostitution, some are sewing

from day break to night fall, others beg having had eyes blinded or limbs

removed to add to their pathos .. and it is not just the children .. their

parents, and their parents, are also begging, anything for the odd coin. The

poverty India can be shocking to say the least and it’s a harsh reminder how

unfair life is.

Poverty is passed from one generation to the next.. So, we need to give

children, families and communities the tools they need to break the cycle of

poverty. These tools include:

1. With a quality education, children will get the knowledge and life skills

they need to realize their full potential. Education is essential in creating

change in a child’s life.

2. Access to health care is essential.

3. Water and sanitation are essential for every child’s survival.

4. Plan works to overcome poverty by helping communities around the

world gain the economic security they need to thrive.

5. By making children learn their rights and take active roles within their

community. Child participation helps children engage in citizenship,

express their views and make decisions that will shape their future and

influence the people around them.

Concept of Hole in the Wall

It is not an actual hole in the wall, rather it is the concept that children learn better on their own and through sharing knowledge with each other. This concept was first started from a single computer in Kalkaji, New Delhi to more than a hundred places in India and abroad. This was conceptually explained by Dr Sugata Mitra, Chief Scientist of NIIT, as Minimally Invasive Education (MIE). It has a wide coverage now in India. This concept is the need of the hour.

The literacy rates in India have been, for a long time, low and the female gender is the one with are the ones hit hard. To uplift our society from this demon of illiteracy Dr Sugata Mitra came up with this brilliant idea of a Hole in the Wall. Lets have a look at what it is and what has it done son far, to alleviate illiteracy rates in India. First of all we must know what i is.

Concept of the Hole-in-the-Wall

Hole in the wall is an initiative to help the underprivileged children and help them learn by sharing knowledge. Children learn better on their own, which is the whole idea behind this concept. Under this concept, a computer screen is encased inside a wall and children can use it without any supervision. It is a concept away from the pedagogic ideology of most of the schools in these remote areas. Children are taught at schools where they do not learn much. The curiosity and the eager mindedness of these children is what Dr Sugata Mitra has given much focus on. Away from the damp and shabby rooms of the class with no electricity and no proper syllabus or a teacher willing enough to teach, children have learned through an unknown screen which is always there for them.

Minimally Invasive Education

Minimally Invasive Education is defined as a pedagogic method that uses the learning environment to generate an adequate level of motivation to induce learning in groups of children, with minimal, or no, intervention by a teacher. There is no teacher to teach when you are near the hole. You and your curiosity are the only things that keep you there.

Research Findings

There is a positive outcome of this concept and the statistics say it all which are a result of a 4 year rigorous research. It is a big yes for this concept of the Hole-in-the-Wall.

These statistics are from the website itself. These are some indicators that tell us what an impact has this concept had.It is a big go for this concept when it comes to spreading literacy.

This shows us the academic performance of class 9 students in class 10 equivalent examinations. Clearly the percentage marks have increased. Hence it is concluded that this concept has improved the learning ability of students and it has done this with no intervention from any teachers.

Conclusion

It has asked us this question that whether there is a need to change the education system altogether. The children who are not able to study because they don't have money have a new best friend. Children who don't have books to study from have a new teacher, and one who never gets angry. They have a friend who will help them everywhere and anytime. This has not been used at a large scale in India. Underprivileged children need the help of this hole in the wall. Maybe they might get sucked inside it to be transformed into an all new world where they can do almost everything they want and live a happy life.

INDIAN EDUCATION SYSTEM

The Indian education is flawed and complex. No doubt the complexity arises due to the

demography and the myriad structure of the Indian society. The system is a narrow

minded one which just focuses on the academics and gives little importance to other

aspects of GROWING .The system pressurizes the minds of the students. It pushes them

to a corner restricting a holistic growth. The very aspect of education is failed in this

competitive atmosphere. Social class still plays a huge role our system, the probability

of a child succeeding in academics belonging to a good class is high as compared to one

belonging to a lower one. Education system has now become a business, wherein the money

and efforts spent on child is considered as an initial “Investment” rather than for the well

being of a child. This system was also not spared by the vicious snare of the political world;

It has become a carefully targeted “Vote bank”. Every competitive exams faced in a way

degrades the ethics and values of education as a general idea lies in the system that for one

to crack these exams one must attend coaching classes , and now a racket of business lies

in this field , these competitive exams have poisoned minds of the young citizens to such an

extent that they are willing to do anything to get a crack at these exams , use any measure

The accessibility of education to every child must be ensured ignoring his/her social,

economical background. Every child must be taught responsibility and values. Education is

the solution for stratification in society.

Effects of Povety on Children

In recent years, about two in five Indian children—some 25-30 million—have lived in families in which cash income failed to exceed official poverty thresholds. Another two fifth lived in families whose incomes were no more than twice the poverty threshold. For a small minority children—4.8% of all children and 15% of children who ever became poor—childhood poverty lasted 10 years or more.

Income poverty is the condition of not having enough income to meet basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter. Because children are dependent on others, they enter or avoid poverty by virtue of their family’s economic circumstances. Children cannot alter family conditions by themselves, at least until they approach adulthood.

EFFECTS ON CHILDREN 

1. Poor children are two times more likely than non poor children to have stunted growth, iron deficiency, and severe asthma.

2. Poverty placed children at greater risk of dying before their first birthdays than did a mother's smoking during pregnancy.

3. Child spends in poverty, there is the chance that the child will fall behind grade level by age 18.

4. The Children's Defense Fund estimates that every year of child poverty at current levels will cost the nation at least $36 billion in lost future productivity alone, because poor children will be less educated and less effective workers.

5. These effects are compounded by the barriers children and their families encounter when trying to access physical and mental health care. 

6. Poverty is linked with negative conditions such as substandard housing, homelessness, inadequate nutrition and food insecurity, inadequate child care, lack of access to health care, unsafe neighborhoods, and under resourced schools which adversely impact our nation’s children.

7. Poorer children and teens are also at greater risk for several negative outcomes such as poor academic achievement, school dropout, abuse and neglect, behavioral and socioemotional problems, physical health problems, and developmental delays.

8. Children living in poverty are at greater risk of behavioral and emotional problems.

9. Poverty and economic hardship is particularly difficult for parents who may experience chronic stress, depression, marital distress and exhibit harsher parenting behaviors. These are all linked to poor social and emotional outcomes for children.

10. Exposure to environmental contaminants, e.g., lead paint and toxic waste dumps.

BPL criteria – Need for reassessment?

“There are people in the world so hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread.” ― Mahatma Gandhi

As per the  2011-12 report of the planning commission, people spending less than Rs 27.2 per day in villages and Rs 33.33 in urban areas were considered poor. As per the estimates, poverty rate declined 2.18 percentage points in each year between 2004-05 and 2011-12, against an average 0.74 percentage points a year in the 10-year period between 1993-94 and 2004-05.Due to this reason, India’s poverty line is sometimes called the ‘starvation line’ since this income based poverty line considers the bare minimum income to provide food and does not account for education and healthcare.

The $1.25 level set by the World Bank is taken as the poverty line globally. The rupee’s value against the dollar averaged 47.85 in 2011-12. The purchasing power parity (PPP) rate for the rupee against the dollar could be arrived at by dividing the average exchange rate by 2.55. So, at the 2011-12 exchange rate of Rs 47.85 a dollar, the PPP rate would be Rs 18.76. The $1.25 poverty line at that PPP rate would mean Rs 23.45 — less than India’s poverty line for both rural and urban areas as announced for 2011-12.

By 2011, the financial burden on the government increased by Rs 80 crores to Rs 100 crore a month since 44 percent of the total 60 million BPL cards are with households that did not need them as per the criteria. The questionnaire administered had only seven questions. It has a 0-7 score, with seven denoting the most poor. Questionnaire also had an automatic inclusion and exclusion category along with the ranking criteria. Based on the ranking it was identified that inclusion criteria was very narrow due to which large mass of the rural poor will not be marked poor and questions to a certain extent also did not reflect actual conditions.

So, taking into consideration the given situation there is an urgent need to reconsider the criteria that has been defined for setting the BPL (below poverty line) and reassess the questions that are asked to collect responses based on which the number of poor people are decided. So far, data reflect that number of people below BPL have declined. However, with such low BPL value defined there is a possibility that we are missing out on a large population of people who are waiting for help and assistance.

National Food Security bill – End to hunger or bag full of new problems?

You cannot feed the hungry on statistics - David Lloyd George

Ever since the National Food Security bill has become a law in 2013 and the growth rate of India has slowed down from 9% in FY06 to FY11 to 5% in FY13, there were several questions over the implementation of it. There have been several estimates that have been made by statisticians. Slower growth also means steep fall in tax revenues. The fiscal deficit is also major concern and if India further slips on its promised 5.2 percent growth rate in FY14, the credit rating agencies could downgrade the country’s investment climate.

India is already spending close to Rs 1.16 lakh crore on schemes that are listed as “entitlements” under the Food Security bill. For instance, food subsidy (Rs 85,000 crore), mid-day meal (Rs 13,215 crore), Integrated Child Development Scheme (Rs 17,700 crore) and maternity entitlements (Rs 450 crore).

So, the additional expenditure through this bill will impact fiscal deficit it is an old issue that had largely been ignored when the growth was good. The other area of concern is procurement of grains from the market. It is expected that there will be significant increase in the amount of foodgrain procured from the market and distort agriculture prices in the process

Nomura had also predicted that the scale of India’s food entitlement programme has the capacity to send global food grain prices soaring in a year when the monsoon is deficient and India has to import grains.  For India, to balance its exporters, consumption of food grain, (of rice, sugar and wheat), and commitment to the poor of this country requires continuous increase in farm productivity. This means increased investment in irrigation, and creating efficient supply chains. India’s food grain production reduced from 259.29 million tonne in 2011-12 to 250 million tonne in 2012-13 because of poor rains. 

The most controversial aspect of the food security law is the restructuring of the public distribution system to cover an unprecedented 67 per cent of the population, most of them in the poorer states. For decades, food grain, mainly rice and wheat, have been distributed at subsidised prices according to the type of ration card people possess —AAY, BPL and APL. The bulk of food subsidies are meant for BPL households but the process of targeting these has always been contentious and unreliable. Surveys show that a substantial number, about 50 per cent, does not possess the prized BPL card.

Having considered all of the above aspects, let's list down some of the key pros ans cons associated with the bill.

Pros:

• 'Right to food' becomes a legal right.
• It helps to empower women, as the eldest woman will be the head of the family.
• Nutritious food will be given to pregnant and lactating mothers. This will lead to healthier families

Cons:

• These food grains will be distributed through the already existing PDS (Public Distribution System) which has many loopholes such as leakages of food grains, corruption etc.
• The cost of this bill Rs.1.24 lakh crore will be a burden for the government, and may lead to fiscal deficit.
• As most of the food grains will be procured by Govt, exports will reduced, which is a big threat to the economy.
• Farmers have to sell their food grains for procurement prices rather than market prices. It will be loss for farmers.

The only thing that we can hope for is that the National Food Security bill deliver best with no severe impact on the economy and let the hungry people of the country get adequate food.

Saving the girl child: Are we doing enough?

Save Girl Child …
The hand that rocks the cradle, the pro-creator, the mother of tomorrow; a woman shapes the destiny of civilization. Such is the tragic irony of fate, that a beautiful creation such as the girl child is today one of the gravest concerns facing humanity

Census 2001 data revealed a drastic fall in the sex ratio, especially the child sex ratio.  Whereas the overall sex ratio dropped from 934 to 920 per 1000 males. Socio-cultural factors and practices, such as the status of women, patriarchal structure of the society, preference for a son, fear of dowry, poverty, illiteracy etc are for some of the reasons for adverse sex ratio.

According to a special report on the girl child and labour by International Labour Organisation (ILO) more than 100 million girl children between the ages of 5 and 17 are engaged in child labour, out of which over 50% of them are in hazardous industries, and 20% of those are below twelve years old. ILO shows that 10% of girls are engaged in "household chores" for more than 24 hours in a week which is twice as much as boys

However, there are national child policies, laws and provisions in place that address the issues surrounding a girl child.
• The National Policy for Children, 1974
• The National Plan of Action for Children, 2005
• The Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994
• The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1986
• The Juvenile Justice Act of 2000
• Indian Penal code
• Balika Samriddhi Yojana
• Kishori Shakti Yojana

The Government of India has also started a "save the girl child" campaign with the slogan "A happy girl is the future of our country". The UN has many initiatives that aim at the welfare of the girl child. The most significant one is the UN Girls' Education Initiative launched in April 2000, at the World Education Forum in Dakar, by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

Gujarat government started ‘Save Girl Child’ campaign in 2005 as a result of which female-male ratio has improved significantly from 844:1000 in 2002 to 898:1000 in 2008, as per the annual central registration survey conducted by the Registrar General of the Government of India.

Madhya Pradesh also launched 'Beti Bachao Abhiyan' in Bhopal in 2011 with a view to ensure that the state's future population maintained a healthy balance in its numbers of boys and girls. They have made efforts to create awareness through use of social media.
https://www.facebook.com/BetiHaiToKalHai

But in spite of all the above efforts malpractices such as abuse and female foeticide have been in operation and have continued till date. Commitment and consistent effort is required on national front with more effective implementation of laws and policies along with severe punishment for those breaking the rules.  

Child labor – the road ahead

In 1986, Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act was enforced but child labour even today is a huge challenge for India. In a recent study conducted on Earth day (April 22) by ASSOCHAM it has been found that over 4.5 lakh child labours engaged in e-waste activities in India. This reflects to the poor state of child labour in our country. As per the ASSOCHAM study, India is likely to generate e-waste to an extent of 15 Lakh metric tonnes (MT) per annum by 2015 from the current level 12.5 Lakh MT per annum growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 25 per cent.  As per Dr. B K Rao, Chairman of ASSOCHAM Health committee, the recyclers are not fully aware of the health risks and deadly mix of toxic can cause severe health problems in those handling the waste. 

Poverty and lack of social security are the main causes of child labour. Another major concern is that the actual number of child labourers goes un-detected. Laws that are meant to protect children from hazardous labour are ineffective and not implemented correctly. In spite of the constant amendments to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986, where more employments have been added to the list of occupations there has not been significant difference. There have also been several criticisms for the act since it is quite about child labour in non- hazardous occupations. So, several more amendments to the acts are required. Parliament panel has recommended several amendments such as punishment to repeated offenders for allowing their children to work and fine may be collected from errant employers for a fund, which it named 'The Child Welfare Fund', used for rehabilitation of the rescued children. The standing committee in its reports on the Bill, which was tabled in Lok Sabha, also recommended for striking out a provision in it that allows for children helping their parents in domestic chores. The committee has also recommended making appropriate rules to prohibit and regulate employment of children and adolescent in audio-visual entertain industry.

In addition to this, National Commission for Protection of Child rights (NCPCR) today laid down a set of recommendations to extend social protection to child labourers. It has underlined the need for a baseline survey to ascertain the number of children employed as labourers and underscored the need for greater clarity to highlight the linkages of social security schemes with child rights.

There is an urgent need for sensitization since the young children facing the atrocities constitute the youth of the country. India as a nation has huge human resource capital which if educated and employed properly can lead to significant development. 

LIFE AT TRAFFIC SIGNAL - Guwahati's Street Kids

 Can India begin to channel some of the creative energy of its twenty-five million street    children? 

As my IIT-DUTY bus came to a halt at a traffic signal on the way to Pan Bazar, Guwahati, a bunch of children dressed in the shabbiest of clothes came running towards me. They showed me variety of items and tried to sell them to me, while a teenage girl held an infant in her arms and begged for money for his food. I was feeling too down to see the same thing happen at every traffic signal until I reached my destination.


We might be the biggest democracy in the world, but we are also home to 25 million street children across the country. According to a UNICEF report, almost 50,000 street children die every day in developing countries, and 25 per cent of them are Indians. These children often suffer from hunger and have no access to clean drinking water or sanitation. They often sleep on pavements, and sometimes you will find an entire family that have spent a few years of their lives under a large expressway or flyover. They change location when police officers drive them away, but once the situation cools down they come back.

Lakhtokia Railway Bridge is a roof of around 1000 poor people of  Guwahati. I have seen how they collect water from the broken pipeline of water in their broken bucket to survive their livelihood.

 The children who work at traffic signals in India are often taught different strategies by their parents or elder brothers and sisters. A eleven-year-old boy told me, he normally targets expensive looking cars because that’s where he gets some pocket change. He said he never wastes time on small and “middle class” cars.Such is the mindset of a seven-year-old boy who sells boxes of tissues in the afternoon and sleeps on the street every night in the hope that he will make more money the next day.

 Meanwhile, when I was living Kota, Rajasthan for the preperation of IIT-JEE one 9 years old girl came to me who sells coloured pens for 10 rupees each, said she normally goes to the cars where she can spot children: “It is easy to persuade children because they immediately start crying for it and then their parents have to buy it.” That girl told me that their “bade bhaiyya” (Big Brother) got the items for them to sell. They must also give whatever they earn during the day to him. These children often indulge in theft, stealing cell phones or handbags at traffic lights.

They also look forward to Valentine’s Day, when they sell a bunch of roses for Rs. 20/pc. As soon as the light turns red they run up to every couple, a bunch of roses in their hands. They say things like “didi kitni sundar hai, iske liye le lo na” (she is so beautiful, take it for her).


On Weekend they have different strategy to earn money.They held in their hands a small steel container filled with oil. On the top of the container was a picture of Shani Dev, the Lord of Saturday, worshiped widely among Hindus. Shani is considered to be a very powerful god. It is said that he gives us the results of our deeds throughout life through appropriate punishments and rewards, so people increasingly believe in giving money on a Saturday to please him. The street children know the significance of Shani Dev in the lives of Hindus, and they use this to earn a living.


  I asked one boy what they do with this money. Do they give it to a priest in a temple? “Are you mad? We give it to our parents and they pay to…...”  Leaving the sentence unfinished, she ran to the other children. There was so much excitement among them. Each one put their hand inside the container to see how much they had collected so far.

It was not a good view. But I was impressed by the never-say-die attitude of these children. The methods might be wrong, the act might be wrong but their attitude is not wrong. These children work from morning until evening, eat whatever they can gather from the garbage nearby; sometimes if they are lucky they can find a half-eaten pizza, otherwise they live on dry bread. But when they see the lights turn red they leave everything and run to work.

Numerous non-profit organisations and non- government organisations are working to

educate

these children so they can improve their standard of living. The government has been sponsoring midday meal schemes in schools for children so they are tempted to come and study. But despite having both the right material and the right facilities, we have failed to blend the two together. Only when the creativity of these children is correctly channeled can we hope for a better future for them.

THE TALE OF THE KINGDOM HILARIA: EPISODE-4

The ‘Mission Transformation’ initiated by the poor people was on the right way and they got an indication of it from what happened that morning. Instead, they wisely managed the sufferings to the cruel prince and also made him realize his mistakes. It is well said that if a lesson has to be taught to someone then pinch his nerves which may make him cry; surely the queen would have realized the miserable conditions in which poor people of Hilaria survived.

The senapati was not less than a nightmare for the queen. And before the queen could take a sip of relief, the devil entered. He assured the lady about attrition in asperity of her bad days and suggested her to gear up for the next level, which was much tougher to make choice for her. The senapati said “Oh majesty, the almighty demands your throne this time. I know your emotional attachment with it but…..” and suddenly livid queen interrupted “Shut your mouth up otherwise I will push my sword into your mouth and pop it from another way.” The only thing which she could never give for granted was the throne of the Kingdom Hilaria. Everybody knew that the queen and the king’s forefathers had been fighting for years to retain their position. She was such a desperate for throne that once her father asked her to merge their states, she agreed to his statement and threw him off the throne cleverly.

Before the queen would start abusing him, the senapati continued “No. No. You took the statement other way my queen. Actually your sufferings are because of this jinx throne. You will have to change it. I didn't suggest you another option because you won’t accept it at any cost my lady. Our state and your temper can’t afford to impart education to poor.”

“I accept the throne to be replaced. I was also planning to replace my throne with another, higher than the previous one and made up of antique gems and stones. Tell your god that I accept the challenge.” the queen replied to the senapati’s words with a devil’s laughter echoing all around.

But none of the challenge is a challenge until and unless it chokes the throat of the survivor. “Surely your throne will be higher this time and made up of stones, but the ceramic stones with a pot. I told you before also that conditions are told thereafter making the choice. You will have to fix a toilet seat in place of your throne as only that can counter the jinx throne.” the man said and brought the queen into jeopardy. The queen accepted the terms and left the hall with crinkled and upset face.

The regal men and people inside the castle watched the whole drama like curious infants and seething inside also. Now, whenever culprits stood in front of queen, they couldn't stop chortles inside, watching their supremo over the ‘Ceramic throne’ and deciding his fate. It was rather a cheap trifle with the lady but whatever she did for the lust of throne was also not acceptable. The queen also refrained from having even routine meetings in the hall, as it was the most insulting remark ever for any ruler to rule sitting on that throne.

“Kill the bastards. How they dare to banter with the queen?” the senapati ran amok to kill when a mole put the whole reality into the ears of the senapati. And by the next moment, the queen heard the matter, roared aloud and called her men for an urgent meeting. 

child trafficking

                                       CHILD TRAFFICKING

Highlighting on yet another issue, I would like up to come with some facts and lines on child trafficking.

We see a lot of movies, don’t we? And they give us many messages in their course of screening.  But what we end up with is a sight of a happy ending, some interesting fight scenes or in some other words entertainment! Entertainment! And entertainment! . Does anyone remember the scene of female child trafficking form the super hit movie of Agneepath?. I doubt if anyone was much touched by it. It had a great message indirectly to rise up against the evil of women trafficking. Yet another scene strokes my mind. It was from movie Bodyguard. It had a scene showing the transport of unaware girls being sent to a different country. And who won’t remember the train scene of movie Ghajini in which the girl had to die just because she stood up for the cause of some little girls against trafficking.  Again the question falls on us, what did we extract from such a display?

Though Trafficking in simple words is defined as "recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt" of a child for the purpose of exploitation in the UN protocols, child trafficking now is typically identified beyond these parameters. The statistics say that 1.2 million children are trafficked every year. Child trafficking can be potentially seen as a major human right violation act.

The objective of child trafficking is often forced child labor. Estimates say that 150 million children aged 5 to 14 in developing countries are involved in child labor. 60% of children within this number are involved in agriculture sector. Yet another objective of child trafficking is sexual exploitation. Sexual exploitation involves activities of sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. Another study says that there are as many as 1.8 million children sexually trafficked worldwide. Other objectives that come in light are child begging, usage of children in drug trades and usage of children in armed forces.. In India the situation is so worse that we don’t even have a count or check on children who are trafficked for the purpose of begging. Even then the studies say that they are 33% of total children trafficked. Rio de janeiro, Brazil has most of its children trafficked engaged in drug trades.

I think the situation is pretty much clear to us now. We need to enact fast and energetically, that’s it ! not much to explain or direct anyone.