When I read the newspaper, I sometimes feel that I live in a totally different world. How can I, sitting in the luxury of my drawing room my legs fully stretched on the cushy sofa legs understand the misery of a child forced to work in a firecracker workshop inhaling millions of poisonous gases, so that he can get a morsel of food. I am definitely not capable of understanding either what a young girl goes through when her parents just to feed their remaining children sell her off. I thought I knew what pain was until I saw children at the construction site pick up bricks twice their weight. This is probably one of the many things I can never understand rather dread to understand.
Once when I was traveling in the train with my friend, I saw a small girl not more than 6 years old with her face all painted in different colours. On entering the compartment she immediately started doing Hoola-hoop around her neck and then around her waist. Her mother carrying a toddler was singing a song to whose tunes the young girl was dancing. She had a big smile painted on her face and on finishing her act when she came to me to ask for money, I saw her eyes. Her eyes bare of any emotions yet deep down I felt connected to her sorrows, and I couldn’t look at her any longer. For a 6 year old to dance like her I can imagine how much her mother must have beaten her. And then is when my friend said that the toddler’s face is also painted……..rather her fate is painted. I wondered how a mother could do such a thing to her daughters. I couldn’t do anything but stare at the empty fields where the wheat was brightly shining under the blazing sun.
Our current government is often accused of increasing the prices, making the lives of the common man miserable but one credit I would definitely want to give this government is to make RTE as an act. Well the question of how effective it might finally turn out to be is a question I always ponder on.
Sometimes I feel without the awareness that the media creates I would have remained ignorant throughout my life. Awareness plays a very vital role in making people aware of their own rights. Children are not aware of their rights but their parents ought to know them. I strongly believe that EDUCATION makes a huge difference in the life of a child. This is what made me join Manorath because it works on a much broader platform of child rights. I always knew that I had to do something for these children and by joining Manorath I have got a real purpose in life. It has been 3 months since I have joined Manorath, and my awareness levels on RTE has increased manifoldly. I have seen the passion in the eyes of my fellow volunteers and the moment you reach the CRY Office the motivation to do something just can’t escape you. Earlier I used to think that as a volunteer I can bring dramatic changes in the education system but my involvement with Manorath has taught me that changes have to be dynamic and sustained and it has to be achieved in collaboration with the respective bodies not by fighting against them. And this in turn has helped me in my professional life also.
Recently I attended a session with the new volunteers and I could see the same amount of confusion in the faces but a zeal to do something. I am sure that Manorath will guide them well. My association with Manorath and CRY has been extremely enriching and I hope to do a lot a future.
P.S. - Say NO to Crackers !
- By Nithya Ranganathan
CRY-Child Rights and You is an Indian NGO that believes that every child regardless of gender, class or economic status has the right to survival, protection, development and participation - thus a childhood. For over 30 years, CRY has partnered with more than 300 grassroot -level NGOs to ensure the rights of over 20,00,000 children by working with their parents and communities they live in, to make this a reality.
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