INDIA'S CHILDREN HELPING TO CARRY THEIR COUNTRY'S WEIGHT

It is easy to see a lot of children working in restaurants, small shops and street food stalls in any Indian city. Not so visible are the children who work in mines  and factories, and many more who help their parents in the fields.

Child labor in India is an irrefutable and persistent reality, and the changes proposed by the government raise doubts among activists, who think that the aims of politicians and the consequences of the laws go in opposite directions.

Recently, Prime Minister Modi passed a  ban on employing children under 14  except in family businesses, entertainment or sports activities (excluding circuses). In these cases, a minor's work must be done outside  school hours or while on holidays, as long as it is not hazardous.

In the package of measures that the Parliament must still pass, there are bigger penalties for breaches of the law, which can go from up to three years in prison and a €700 fine. However, activists have described the changes proposed by Modi's government as "regressive"; 'We are legalizing a horrible reality rather than banning it', says lawyer Vrinda Grover.

The Executive Branch maintains that its rationale is a "balance between the need to educate a child and the socio-economic reality of the social fabric of the country". According to the World Bank, 300 million Indians live on less than €1 a day, so many children accompany their parents in occupations such as handicrafts and agriculture.

However, when Kailash Satyarthi won the Nobel Peace Prize for his defense of the rights of children, he said that "This scourge persists due to the corruption of the authorities and the apathy of society. There is a lot of money laundering behind child exploitation". In India, laws are one thing and their implementation quite another.

We hope that in the near future, no child will have to say what Rahul, a youngster in northern India expressed; 'Until I got to tenth grade, I had to combine work and study. I would rather have studied, but I had to help my family."

Source: elmundo.es

RENEWED HOPE

We are happy to share the following results from a PET CT scan done on Hritik on 15 July:

“Previously seen FDG avid cervical lymph nodes have completely regressed. Present follow-up study shows complete regression (...) suggesting good response to treatment.”

Given such good results, he will continue with chemotherapy as planned until all sessions are finished.

We also have good news regarding payment for Hritik’s treatment. The total amount needed has just been reached through your kind donations, so we are set to go and standing by his side all the way.

THANK YOU in Hritik’s name.

THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING A TOILET

Nearly 590 million Indians defecate outdoors. That  almost half the population in the country. As a result, Prime Minister Modi has launched the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan program (Clean Inda Mission) which includes the construction of 110 million toilets until 2019.

Only a third of the households have access to a toilet. “We cannot stop working until we eradicate this scourge that causes illnesses and makes women vulnerable”, Modi said during the presentation of a plan that was launched last April 1 and whose cost is estimated at 29,000 million euros.

Sugali is one of its beneficiaries. For five days, this farmer and his wife work hard at building their toilet. “Now we are aware the advantages of having a toilet. Before, we did’t even we thought about it although we were embarrassed to go in a public place and did our best to hold it in till night time.” His wife did miss it. “Men have it easy, but women suffer”, she says while looking at her husband reproachfully. Their two children are boys, so she was a minority.

”Building toilets is relatively simple, all you need is money. The hard part is to change the mentality of the population. Therefore, planning and training  people is vital for the plan to succeed”, states a government spokesman.

In the village of Dehelud they no longer have that challenge. Six years ago, their mayor received the Nirmal Gram Puraskar national award to the cleanest town for having turned his village in the State of Rajasthan into the the first one where all households have a toilet. This has made the cases of diarrhea to drop by 40% and the town a safer place for women, as they no longer fall pray to possible sexual assaults while out in the fields alone.

Source: elpais.com

JUST LIKE HOME

In the past few months, our staff in charge of the Day Care facility at Asha-Kiran's Community Center have noticed a drastic improvement in the children. They are more involved in the activities conducted by the teacher, they cry less, heve fun, explore, and there are more happy faces overall.

We are pleased to see that the children see our Day Care Center as a welcoming and fun place, and that their mothers trust Asha-Kiran to care for their sons and daughters while they go to work.

CHANGE FROM THE INSIDE OUT

Upon listening to sayings like "I wish you to father a thousand sons" or "Raising a daughter is like watering the neighbor's garden" and knowing the statistics on infanticide, feticide, honor crimes, sexual exploitation, chastity and forced sexual darkness, the question that arises is: why are laws that have already been passed in favor of women not implemented in India?

The main reason could be that there is a conflict between Domestic and Customary law. The latter consists of traditions and customs  not included in any governmental regulation. In addition, a high percentage of women have no access to the judicial system due to illiteracy and lack of knowledge or money.

Despite the generalized view that Indian women are weak, they are able to introspect on their subordinate status. That is why organizations like Naya Nagar offer Indian women Mahila Mandal, voluntary associations of women who want to be heard before the government while working together to improve their community. This way, women have a chance to go against stereotypes and convey their concerns and desire for change to politicians.

A Mahila Mandal fights human rights violations, sexism, religious sexism and homophobia. It exerts pressure on the government from  a human rights perspective by mobilizing communities and using democratic, non-bellicose procedures.

These women are present in the sphere of power of their community by organizing themselves, assuming leadership and mediating between groups. Just the same, there is still a long way to go. It is necessary for every world citizen to adopt an open and responsible attitude so that everyone in this  world is responsible for human development.

Source. huffingtonpost.com

RANGOLI AT YASHODHARA

Asha-Kiran held an Arts competition for the children who live at Yashodhara Home. Aside from making pictures with water colors and sketching with pencils, the children made rangoli designs.

Rangoli are designs made with ingredients such as colored rice, flour, flower petals, turmeric, vermillion and colored sand. The patterns include the face of Hindu deities, geometric shapes, and round floral designs. Many of these motifs are traditional and are handed down by previous generations.

A prize distribution program was held soon after the competition. Each of A-K’s staff members were invited to distribute the prizes to the winners.

MOVING A MOUNTAIN

Back in the 60's, the small town of Gehlaur in northern India was almost isolated. A 90-meter-tall mound made the access to schools, hospitals and jobs very difficult. A man from the area, Dashrath Manjhi, had to climb it every day to get to the farm where he worked. There was a dangerous road where accidents often happened. One day, his wife was injured on her way to bring Manjhi his lunch. It was then that he decided to sell his goats and buy some tools to build a better road.

Without giving up his job in the fields, Manjhi devoted his free time and many hours of sleep to burrow a hole in the mountain. Some time later, his wife became seriously ill and was unable to travel to the nearest city (75 km away), where the doctor was. The loss of his wife strengthened Manjhi’s resolve. Residents of the village began to give him food, and after leaving his job, this true regional hero finished building 100-meter-long and 10-meter-wide road after working on his own for 22 years, and using just hammers, crowbars and chisels.

Completed in 1982, the road still serves the purpose of turning the formerly difficult journey to schools and hospitals into a 5 km walk. If the determination and commitment of a single person can move a mountain, what could many hands and hearts accomplish together?

Source: rt.com