Rights of the Child

In India, the post-independence era has experienced an unequivocal expression of the commitment of the government to the cause of children through constitutional provisions, policies, programmes and legislation. The Constitution of India in Article 39 of the Directive Principles of State Policy pledges that "the State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing .... that the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused, and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age or strength, that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner, and in conditions of freedom and dignity, and that childhood and youth are protected against exploitation, and against moral and material abandonment."

As a follow-up of this commitment and being a party to the UN declaration on the Rights of the Child 1959, India adopted the National Policy on Children in 1974. The policy reaffirmed the constitutional provisions and stated that "it shall be the policy of the State to provide adequate services to children, both before and after birth and through the period of growth to ensure their full physical, mental and social development. The State shall progressively increase the scope of such services so that within a reasonable time all children in the country enjoy optimum conditions for their balanced growth."

As the responsibility of children's nurture and proper growth is bestowed on the Government, children's programmes have occupied a prominent place in the national plans for human resource development. Successive Five Year Plans have provided the wherewithal to deal with these issues. In the last decade of this century, dramatic technological developments particularly in the areas of health, nutrition, education and related spheres have opened up new vistas of opportunities for the cause of children.

 India's Commitment Towards Children's Rights

The Constitution of India, the National Policy for Children, many other policies and legislation accord priority to children's needs. The Government of India ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child on 2nd December, 1992. Accordingly, the government is taking action to review the national and state legislation and bring it in line with the provisions of the Convention. It has also developed appropriate monitoring procedures to assess progress in implementing the Convention, involved all relevant government/ministries/departments, international agencies, non-governmental organisations, and the legal profession in the implementation and reporting process, publicised the Convention, and sought public inputs for frank and transparent reporting.

India is also a signatory to the World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children. In pursuance of the commitment made at the World Summit, the Department of Women and Child Development under the Ministry of Human Resource Development has formulated a National Plan of Action for Children. Most of the recommendations of the World Summit Action Plan are reflected in India's National Plan of Action.

The National Plan of Action has been formulated keeping in mind the needs, rights and aspirations of 300 million children in the country and sets out quantifiable time limits for India's Charter of Action for Children by 2000 AD. The priority areas in the Plan are health, nutrition, education, water, sanitation and environment. The Plan gives special consideration to children in difficult circumstances and aims at providing a framework, for actualisation of the objectives of the Convention in the Indian context. The National Plan of Action also lists out activities to achieve these goals. To make the aims and activities of the plan more need-based and area-specific, the Central Government has urged the State governments to prepare a Plan of Action for Children for their States, taking into account the regional disparities that may exist.

The Girl Child

The slogan of the Indian government for the Girl Child campaign was "A Happy Girl is the Future of our Country". Traditions, customs and social practices that place greater value on sons than on daughters, who are often viewed as an economic burden, still stand in the way of the girl child being able to achieve her full potential. A sustained educational campaign by the government and the NGOs has been started to ensure that baseless discrimination against the girl child is eliminated.

The Government of India has taken measures to protect and promote the Girl Child. It has announced its "Education for All" campaign which is to reach 19-24 million children in the age group 6-14, of whom 60 percent are girls. A National Plan of Action for the Girl Child for 1991-2000 was also announced. This plan seeks to prevent female foeticide and infanticide, eliminate gender discrimination, provide safe drinking water and fodder near homes, rehabilitate and protect girls from exploitation, assault and abuse. The government's national policy of education and the Action Research Project on "The Girl Child and the Family" are also aimed at formulation of programs to improve the status of the girl child.

Street Children

It is estimated that there are 314,700 street children in Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Kanpur, Bangalore and Hyderabad combined and about 100,000 in Delhi. Factors which have given rise to the increase in number of street children in India include poverty, family break-ups, armed conflicts, natural and man-made disasters, lack of employment opportunities and the attraction of cities.

Street Children have received much attention in the media, both national and international in the recent years. The awareness and sensitization efforts have led to several initiatives involving numerous groups working with street children, launching of specific schemes and programs at the local, state and national level and initiation of numerous studies on street children.

Non-Governmental Organizations or NGOs in India are doing laudable work in this area and are dealing with issues related to shelter, health, education and training of these children. A Central Scheme for the welfare of street children has recently been initiated by the Ministry of Welfare, Government of India. This scheme gives grant-in-aid to NGOs working on issues of street children.

India has also ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child which came into force in 1990. This ratification implies that India will ensure wide awareness about Child issues among the government agencies, implementing agencies, the media, the judiciary, the public at large and the children themselves. The Government's endeavour is to create a conducive climate for acceptance of the goals of the Convention and to amend all legislation, policies and schemes to meet the standards set in the treaty framework.