There is no fun being a child in India

It is ironical that for a nation which claims to be performing better in the economic field than most countries in Europe despite the slowdown, and is planning to send a spacecraft to Mars, the condition of the bottom half of the population continues to be pitiable. This sorry state of affairs is not about the poverty-stricken sections alone, but, what is worse, it concerns the most vulnerable of all groups — the children — who are the helpless victims of the government’s continued neglect of their plight.

Although routine homilies are uttered on November 14, the pledges have made no difference to the fact that 1.8 million children die before the age of five due to diarrhoea and pneumonia. That both the diseases are preventable and treatable makes their deaths even more heart-rending. The reason why they succumb easily to these and other ailments cannot but be linked to the shocking fact that 40 per cent of the children are undernourished, a piece of statistic that should make the authorities, and especially those in the health sector, hang their heads in shame. The resultant stunted growth of 45 per cent of children gives some indication why winning medals at international sporting events will remain in single digits in the foreseeable future.

Considering that indigence is largely responsible for the malnourishment, it is hardly surprising that there are 49.84 lakh child labourers in India despite the ban on engaging them. The need to start earning at an early age either to survive or to help out the family explains why 13.3 per cent of children in the 10-18 age group have to forsake school education as they have to earn a living.

Among other figures which suggest that it is no fun being a child in India is one which indicates that 42 per cent of the children are casual wage earners. This may explain why similar percentages of children are underfed and dwarfish.