The second Guest post is from a fellow blogger Bikram!
"I am Me basically, I dont wish for much but just a lottery jackpot so i can retire and live happy ever after.. Not too much to ask .. This is me trying to walk in step with the world .."
this is how he introduces himself in his blog Me and My random thoughts. A Gregarious person, he encourages everyone and enjoys making entries in his blog. Here i present to you his post on Child Labour! _______________________________________________________________
There are many little children in India, who are spending their valuable childhood in fields, jungles, factories, homes and stores, to earn a living for themselves and their family. Their innocent childhood is clouded with the worries that haunt them day and night till they faint with fatigue. And this is not the story of a single day. It is a grueling reality which traps him in a vicious circle, leaving no way out. No matter what dreams his little mind dares to see, his family - that generally is in no way confined to a small number, forces him to bear the onus of the family. His little shoulders stoop under the burden thrusted upon him in such a small age.
That is the story of the ‘poor’ child (pun intended). This child represents every other child who is unfortunately born to a family that is below the Poverty Line. This makes matters worse if the child is a girl. In fact, some people consider the birth of a girl child as a burden & in many cases, murders or abandonment of the girl child have been reported.
Although in this age of computers & nanotechnology, it seems a fable, yet, this glaring reality is staring at our faces today. There was a gory incident in A.P. that happened several years back, and still remains in my memory till date. This incident found great coverage in all the news media. It was about a cruel ritual followed by tribal people in a remote village, according to which, 105 children are buried alive for one minute every year in order to please their local Gods. The incident was reported in the news for some days, but nothing apart from that was done. Although the government passed laws against such gory rituals, there are many such incidents that go unreported. No one protests, no one comes forward to do something about it. Human sacrifices are still happening in remote areas of the country. But who is to care?
Many similar incidents have been reported during the last few years, which tear at our hearts. A case in example is again the notorious Nithari Kand as the news channels like to put it, where in, human skeletons were found in a house, subsequent investigations of which led to the arrest of the house owner who confessed to having committed many more heinous crimes than the one in question.
Another important issue rising today is that of human trafficking which consists of a major percentage of children, mostly girls. From many parts of the country, girls have been reported missing. These girls most of the time, end up in another state/country, where they are put up for crimes such as forced/handicapped begging & prostitution. Many bar girls have such stories to tell, but no body to hear them out. News channels bring out such issues for filling out their prime time schedules during the weekends, but nothing concrete is done to help them. In fact, such issues need addressing right at the top form, from the state level ministers and the so-called Parliamentarians.
“Today’s child is tomorrow’s citizen”, how much are we striving to make the child a healthy, responsible citizen of our country? No body cares to turn and see the little child in rags lying on one side of the footpath, writhing in hunger and giving soulless stares to the passersby. He should be in school, studying for a bright future. If that is the picture of the future citizen, it’s certainly not something to be proud of in any way. What is to be done to alter this image of the future Indian?
We need our youth to become more sensible towards issues like these, issues that can only be revolutionized by the young mind. Although the order of the day seems to be , “Live and Let Live”, and although selfishness seems to have clouded the minds of people, by completely blocking them from realities such as these; yet, there is always Hope in the heart of every single youth who seems to understand the pathetic plight of the child laborers. However, the number of such empathizing youth is quite less, because such ‘seers’ are left to handle the situation alone.
One twig can be broken easily, but a group of twigs cannot. So also, combined effort towards the upliftment of poor children will make an iota of difference that can prove a lifesaver to someone, although it may not seem much of a burden to the aides.
Moreover, the youth of today hold the key to the solution of the nation’s corruption and backwardness, yes, I use backwardness, because, there is only selective development in our country - selective development that is seen only in the metros & other larger cities. As for the towns and rural areas, there can only be hope, since these are the places where superstitions, orthodox values and age-old rituals still prevail to a greater or a lesser extent. But the point is that they DO prevail and hence, become the road-blocks in the development of the country’s children & in turn, the country itself. “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link”, hence I use the word backwardness; the day progress enters the rural-most areas in the country, we will be called “strong” and “developed” in the true sense of the word.
The role of government in addressing this issue needs to be evaluated in terms of the results. There is a need for tangible results, successful cases of children freed from captivity, child labour bondages, trafficking victims & prostitution racket bust-ups. The role of a government doesn’t end at freeing the children. It must take stock of their lives, keep a track of their livelihood, pay for their primary education & arrange for vocational courses to be taught to them.
This situation demands the collective effort of the youth, the media, the government & the NGO’s if any proper results have to be attained. When everybody works in tandem, things will fall into place. Who knows, the child we save today, could become a doctor & save the lives of hundreds of people during his lifetime!!
Cheers!
