Sanjay Gupta, director of Chetna, a Delhi-based charity that works with child labourers and street children, says the worst affected are the millions of homeless children who live in cities - on streets, under flyovers, or in narrow lanes and bylanes. "During the lockdown everyone has been told to stay home. But what about the street children? Where do they go?" he asks. According to one estimate, Delhi has more than 70,000 street children. But Mr Gupta says that number is really much higher.
lørdag 11. april 2020
Coronavirus: The children struggling to survive India's lockdown
The sudden imposition of a 21-day lockdown in India to stop the spread of the coronavirus has thrown the lives of millions of children into chaos. Tens of thousands are calling helplines daily while thousands are going to bed hungry as the country shuts down to battle the pandemic. With 472 million children, India has the largest child population in the world and campaigners say the lockdown has impacted around 40 million children from poor families. These include those working in farms and fields in rural areas, as well as children who work as ragpickers in cities or sell balloons, pens and other knick-knacks at traffic lights.
Sanjay Gupta, director of Chetna, a Delhi-based charity that works with child labourers and street children, says the worst affected are the millions of homeless children who live in cities - on streets, under flyovers, or in narrow lanes and bylanes. "During the lockdown everyone has been told to stay home. But what about the street children? Where do they go?" he asks. According to one estimate, Delhi has more than 70,000 street children. But Mr Gupta says that number is really much higher.
Sanjay Gupta, director of Chetna, a Delhi-based charity that works with child labourers and street children, says the worst affected are the millions of homeless children who live in cities - on streets, under flyovers, or in narrow lanes and bylanes. "During the lockdown everyone has been told to stay home. But what about the street children? Where do they go?" he asks. According to one estimate, Delhi has more than 70,000 street children. But Mr Gupta says that number is really much higher.
