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Where are 2 lakh missing children? SC asks govt
Why it is in news?
- The Supreme Court was in for a shock after coming to know that over two lakh children lodged in thousands of child care institutions across India have gone “missing”, as there was huge difference between the figures in two documents submitted by the Centre before it.
National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) survey
- National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) survey showed that 50,000 children in these homes were ready for adoption but government agencies were not willing to do the needful.
- A survey commissioned by the Centre and executed by the NCPCR in 2016-17 showed that in over 9,000 shelter homes 4.73 lakh children were lodged. But a status report filed by the Centre in March said only 2.61 lakh children were lodged in 8,734 child care institutions.
- If it’s an inflated figured then the money involved is mindboggling. The government pays Rs 2,000 to look after every child. This would go into crores.
- An apparently unconvinced Bench asked if the Centre cross-checked with states. These figures are alarming. Surveys do have errors but it cannot be 100%.
- As the Bench proposed to set up monitoring committees at national and state levels to look into the issue of shelter homes, the Centre expressed reservations over it.
- To be headed by retired Supreme Court and retired high court judges, these committees would include government officials and activists.
- Discussing the NCPRC survey conducted in association with NGO Child Line, Bhat told the court that biting, pinching, restriction on movement, withholding food, rest and use of toilet besides use of abusive languages were the most common methods applied in child care institutions to “discipline” children.
- The Bench is hearing a PIL on exploitation of children in shelter homes and orphanages. NCPCR survey – which covered over 9,000 homes – found that 4,416 of these homes used these regressive methods to “discipline” child inmates.
Source
The Hindu