The Hindu : Other States / Bihar News : Call for rehabilitating children

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Friday, Apr 09, 2004

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Other States - Bihar

Call for rehabilitating children

NEW DELHI, APRIL 8. As 60 per cent of street children sweating it out on the capital's dhabas, streets and railway station are from Bihar, an action group has sought to rehabilitate them in their home state and get them a fair treatment under the Juvenile Justice act.

Though the 2000 Juvenile Justice Act provides for many good measures for children unde the category, the act is yet to be understood in its full measure by police, judicary and NGOs with the result that children do not always get fair treatment, say experts.

Thus the first study under the Act by NGO Prayas and Canadian International Development Agency has got into the problems of street children, their origin and their compulsion for coming to the metros.

``Around 60 per cent of children coming to Delhi and working at railway stations are from Bihar. A number of Bihari children are also going to other metropolis like Mumbai and Kolkata mainly due to economic reasons,'' says Ajay Singh of Prayas.

The study of 305 children in Bihar and 189 in Delhi found that most of the children from Bihar come to Delhi because of economic factors.

Besides the economic factor, the study points out that the migration of a senior family member normally precedes the coming of these children. Moreover, many of these children are brought here through touts.

Interestingly the majority of the children want to go back home once they see the life in the city and also save for the purpose.

``Most of the children start saving from their first earning onwards as they want to go back home, But the deposits are made with the local panwallahs who seldom give them back and also cheat them of their earnings. And once caught in the vicious cycle of city life and bad habits like liquor and tobacco, the urge to go home generally diminishes,'' says Singh.

Keeping in mind this desire to go home, the NGO has intervened to rehabilitate them to their home place or keep them in homes where they can lead a decent life.

Around 20 children have already been rehabilitated to Bihar.

The study has also dwelt on the reasons as to why the children are coming to the capital and the treatment of juveniles in the state.

During the course of the study, Singh said it was found that there is very less awareness of the Act among police officers, judiciary and NGOs with the result that children sometimes find themselves being treated unfairly by the law.

-- PTI

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