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| Underprivileged children soft targets of abuse | | |
NEW DELHI, JAN 9
The plight of underprivileged children of the society has, following the Nithari killings,come into a sharp focus. A number of the children, who end up being soft targets of child abuse, live in children's homes.
Bal Sahyog, a home for juvenile boys in Delhi, is one such cesspool of abuse. A special investigation has revealed that many children on the rolls of Bal Sahyog are missing and yet no action has been taken so far. "Ek ladkey ney chori ki toh kisi ne bol diya ki mainey chori ki toh usne mujhe mara khub kamre mai band karke. Mujhe gussa aaya mai chala gaya. (A boy committed robbery and somebody told my name. Then they beat me and locked me inside a room. After that I ran away)," 11-year-old Sachin wrote in a letter addressed to those running Bal Sahyog before he ran away.
The letter from the Child Welfare Committee to the Director of Bal Sahyog shows that five to seven children brought here in May 2006 are missing. CNN-IBN tracked Sachin, one of the seven missing boys, at the New Delhi railway station. He says he prefers to stay at the railway station than returning to Bal Sahyog.
In a story put out by CNN-IBN, it is stated that another boy, Manoj, also went missing a few months ago. However, the director of Bal Sahyog, Devendre, shrugs it off the claim. The CNN-IBN report quotes him as saying: "There are two gates. Wo bachcha kabhi bhi slip ho kay bahar nikal gaya. (Children ran away as there are two gates in the home.)"
Children living at Bal Sahyog are often victims of other form of abuse as well. Raju, who stays in there has been quoted as saying: "Mere ko kuch nahi aata tha yahan aane sa pehle yahan aake sab seekh gaya. (I didn't know a thing before coming here. now I do.)
According to the report, these boys are talking about older inmates sodomizing younger boys. The children are also falling prey to substance abuse. "The administration, however, is just not bothered", the report insists. And the report has quoted Bal Sahyog superintendent, SP Sharma, as saying: "Hostel mein har tarah ki baat ho sakti hai. ye bhi ho sakta hai ki bachchey bahar ghumnay chale jaatey hon. Aisi possibility bhi ho sakti hai ki ye samney cinema hall hai bachchey ticket black karnay chale jaatey hon. Possibility hai. (All things can happen in hostel. Kids may be going out selling cinema tickets in black.)"
Started by Indira Gandhi in the 1950s, today Bal Sahyog is nobody's baby. The CNN-IBN claims to be in the possession of a leter, signed by a PMO (Prime Minister's Office) official, showing their involvement in Bal Sahyog director's appointment.
Five boys, the report says, have been missing from Bal Sahyog for months. Are they back at railway stations? Have they been trafficked or gone the Nithari way? And the thought-provoking comment from CNN-IBN: "While the streets can be ruthless, it seems welfare homes could be worse". |
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