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| "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear." - Nelson Mandela |
"Shalini was a sincere intelligent girl, full of life and
exuberance. She was favorite among her teachers and class mate. But all of a
sudden for no visible reason her grades started to fall.
Her worried parents put a cut on all her leisure time and made
her sit with books, threatened her, scolded her beyond imagination.
One fine day being able to collect some strength, she tried
confronting her mother. “Mom, I don’t feel happy, when sir tries to touch me.”,
“I feel bad sitting on his lap”.
Shalini was only 10 years old; she was made to accept it and was
asked to be quite about it.
The happy childhood of Shalini was ripped off".
I feel fortunate
enough to be able to spend some good quality time with my great grandmother (maternal).
And she used to say that this present era is of Kalyug and alike previous yug,
we do have demons in this era too, but peculiarity of Kalyug demons are, they
don’t have long nails, dirty face or ugly features, they look like humans but
their act are devilish.
Almost daily I read
incidence of child abuse, child rape, kids of as small as 4 years old are being
falling prey to such demons, it makes me shiver with fear and worry.
How to stop this
menace? How to protect our kids? Whom to trust?
The scars of abuse can
destroy a child’s life beyond imagination. And the only ways we can help our
kids is by teaching them about the wrong and a right touch. Protecting them by being careful with the
people our kids interact. Giving them moral support and care whenever
they need.
The other most
prevalent form of exploitation is child labor, very much on rise in our
country.
A week back I went to
a restaurant to have dinner, on my adjoining table was a family with two small
kids, they also had their care taker for kids with them, she was a small girl
of around 14-15 years of age. At the end of meals I saw that girl eating left
over food from the plates while the family members were busy clicking selfies
in the terrace garden.
Children are the future
of our developing country. Child rights are often forgotten and neglected. If
we just leave everything to destiny, it won’t be of any help. The basic child rights are : Right to survival,
Right to protection, Right to participation, Right to development. There is an
extreme need to provide the children with useful opportunities on continuous
basis to help them develop skills and make them competent.
Ground realities
§
With
more than one-third of its population below 18 years, India has the largest young
population in the world.
§
Only
35% of births are registered, impacting name and nationality.
§
One
out of 16 children die before they attain the age of 1, and one out of 11 die before
they are 5 years old.
§
35%
of the developing world’s low-birth-weight babies are born in India.
§
40%
of child malnutrition in the developing world is in India.
§
The
declining number of girls in the 0-6 age-group is cause for alarm. For every
1,000 boys there are only 927 females -- even less in some places.
§
Out
of every 100 children, 19 continue to be out of school.
§
Of
every 100 children who enroll, 70 drop out by the time they reach the secondary
level.
§
Of
every 100 children who drop out of school, 66 are girls.
§
65%
of girls in India are married by the age of 18 and become mothers soon after.
§
India
is home to the highest number of child labourers in the world.
§
India
has the world’s largest number of sexually abused children, with a child
below 16 raped every 155th minute, a
child below 10 every 13th hour, and at least one in every 10 children sexually abused at any
point in time.
(Source
of valuable information from - infochangeindia.org/agenda/child-rights-in-india/status-of-children-in-india
(Image
source - etsy.com/listing/92648063/children-at-play-child-silhouette-die, scoopwhoop) 
It's really pathetic to see how innocent children are becoming victim to sexual abuse. Parents really need to hear their children and provide them moral support. Many parents are there who just disreagrds these things.
ReplyDeleteA nice and informative post, Swati :)
You are right Purba. Moral support and patience is all that is needed.
DeleteThe parents have a great role in bringing awareness to young children of what is acceptable and what is not from strangers,teachers and even relatives.They must encourage children to confide in them freely and must watch their behaviour closely.
ReplyDeleteThe rights of children is a vast subject and society alone can bring about welcome changes.
We all can contribute and bring in the required change in our society by starting from our own families.
DeleteThanks a lot.
These are some terrible stats to look at, Swati. I myself did some research on Child Illiteracy and Abuse few weeks back and was astounded by all what is happening out there.
ReplyDeleteWe all can do our bit to fight this menace in our own ways...try loving these kids as a start.
By playing our role right we can bring in the required change. Love, care and support can make lives of our kids beautiful.
DeleteYour article is an eye opener.
ReplyDeleteI have decided that I will look for the street children in my locality and will try to help them by providing them food and old clothes.
I usually waste Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 1,500 monthly on useless things. I think I can buy some things for them
I think I should also tell them that they can come on holidays for an hour or so for basic education; if they feel so.
Let us see how this initiative takes shape in future..
Anyways, thankyou for sharing the harsh realities about the society.....
Regards,
Yash
That's really wonderful Yash.
DeleteYour thoughts are really inspiring.
We all need to take such initiatives.
Lots of best wishes to you.