KANDHAMAL’ S

FORGOTTEN CHILDREN

A STUDY BY
OF HAQ: CENTRE FOR CHILD RIGHTS
NEW DELHI
 
ON BEHALF OF
NATIONAL SOLIDARITY FORUM
 HAQ Team visited 18 villages in
Kandhamal

The team used drawing, writing and

open discussions to capture the
feelings of the children.
 Situation now
• People are still staying in tents

• Livelihoods of the victims are badly

affected

• People have not been to work for last two

years
 Children need to be immediately
protected from:

Health hazards

Shelter
Health hazards

Hunger
Hunger

Exploitation and abuse

Psychological harm
and trauma
How protected are the Children of
Kandhamal?
 High rate of IMR in Kandhmal
2007-08 2008-09 2009-10
603 837 750

In K Nuagaon block, the IMR increased from

37 in 2007 to 88 in 2008. In 2009 it was 61.

In March 2009, there were 109 still births. The

trend continued with 85 still births till March
2010.
The number of malnourished children in
grade III (moderate) and grade IV (severe)
has consistently risen in the last three
years.
Year Grade-I Grade- Grade- Grade-
II III IV
2008 37.86 16.24 0.38 0.05
2009 35.66 17.26 0.81 0.09
2010 36.59 15.87 1.18 0.12
 Broken Education
• Children were refused
admission in schools

• Many children were forced

to change school.

• On average, 10 children
from each of the villages
visited by the team were
found to have shifted to
residential schools after
the violence

• A large number of children

have dropped out of school
due to financial and social
insecurity, and many of
them have gone out to
work
 In Raikia block,10,000 people were
sheltered
in St Catherine Girls’ School and Vijay
High School.

Around 40,000 victims were sheltered in

nearly 40 schools
The lacuna in relief and rehabilitation of the
victim families, is keeping the children,
from leading a normal life and returning to
their carefree, school-going days
 Mental Trauma & Psycho Social
Problems
The anxiety of the children is
vivid in the statements

– We have lost all hope!

– Now, we don’t have any
aim in life!
– Our future is tarnished
by this violence!
– We have no peace; even
now we are staying with
fear.
Child Protection Ignored
 Cases of child trafficking on the rise
• In April 2010 in Gumamaha
panchayat, 15 girls were rescued
from Bhubaneswar railway
station, while two other girls
studying in class 7 were rescued
from Noida.

- According to District Welfare

Officer, four girls from the
Daringbadi block were trafficked
to Delhi to work as domestic
labour.

- According to District Labour

Officer, post-violence, families are
migrating to other districts and
states for work, making migrant
labour of children
 Immediate issues to be addressed
• Construction and repairs of the schools, hostels and
dispensaries damaged in the violence have not yet
been repaired or constructed.
• Proper mechanism to create a database of the affected
children, which can be used to develop care plans for
children of different age groups.
• Strict implementation of the provisions of the JJ Act
to check proliferation of illegal activities involving
children, such as trafficking for child labour, sexual
abuse and adoption.
Contd…

• Children sent to residential schools in Kerala,

Karnataka, Chennai and Andhra Pradesh to
save their lives and career, are finding it tough to
adjust to the new language, culture, etc.

• Many children who completed schooling from

missionary schools are now studying for their
Bachelor in Theology (BTh) degree, which
probably restricts their career choice
What the Children Want?
• There should be all facilities (food, water and
sanitation) and should not be too many people in a
relief camp.

• At least two pairs of dresses should be given to each

member of a family.

• Education facilities should be provided, so that the

studies are not discontinued.

• Compensation or relief should reach to all the victims

on time without causing undue harassment
Contd…

• CRPF or police protection should be provided to

the victims.
• School/examination fee concessions should be
given to the affected children especially to those
children whose earning family members are
seriously injured and unable to work.
 What should be done to prevent such
violence?

- The government, police and the CRPF should play an effective

and unbiased role during incidents of mass violence.
- The government should take all precautions and preventive
measures to ensure that the current hate environment is never
recreated.
- It should work towards spreading brotherhood in the community,
irrespective of all religions. There should not be any
discrimination on the basis of religion, caste and creed.
- It should find out the root cause behind the violence and work
towards the elimination of these causes. It should punish the
offenders.
THANK YOU