Guwahati, March 25 : Caught in the crossfire between militants and security forces, the future of young children in the Northeast does not appear to be too rosy.
Speakers at a conclave on early childhood care and development — organised by global outfit Plan India — highlighted how “armed conflicts”, an euphemism for militancy, has been causing displacement of a large number of families with children across the region irrespective of social status and economic background.
“The armed conflicts have caused severe harm to children — from physical harm to mental stress. These children are in the most vulnerable stage of their lives and yet they are deprived of care and support services,” Biswajit Chakrabarty, a former professor of Cotton College, said in his paper on Quick Survey of the Status of Young Children in the Northeast.
The issues discussed in the two-day workshop will be incorporated in the India Country Report, which will be sent to UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in Geneva later this year.
The conclave, co-hosted by Forum for Creche and Childcare Services, was organised in order to initiate a reflection on the status of children in the Northeast.
“Armed conflict has also caused much displacement and those displaced are being sheltered in temporary camps,” Chakrabarty said in his paper.
A large number of women migrant labourers can be seen almost throughout the region engaged in construction on roads, bridges and drainage projects.
“They constitute a significant section of unorganised workers and children belonging to these workers are totally devoid of any services — health, nutrition or pre-school education,” Chakrabarty said.
According to data released, 20-30 per cent of rural children in the northeastern states are either stunted, an indicator of chronic under-nutrition or wasted, an indicator of acute under nutrition or underweight, indicator of chronic and acute malnutrition. Some states like Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh have touched alarming figures of 30-40 per cent of its children being either wasted or underweight.
Experts said the integrated child development service had performed rather poorly in the northeastern states. Corruption, under staffing, poor infrastructure and lack of awareness among the people in the rural areas are some of the hurdles plaguing their programmes.
India is a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the Centre will have to submit a report to the UNCRC committee in Geneva later this year.
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