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'CHILDLINE India Foundation' estimates that number of children in India is 40 crore of which Number of orphans unfortunately in India is 3.1 crore. - Estimated by United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF).
The Indian embassy estimated 3,14,700 street children in cities like Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Kanpur, Bangalore and Hyderabad and around 1,00,000 street children in Delhi. Childline says - "Children of the street" are homeless children who live and sleep on the streets in urban areas. They are on their own and do not have any parental supervision or care though some do live with other homeless adults. "Children on the street" earn a livelihood from street such as street urchins and beggars. They return home at night and have contact with their families. The distinction is an important one because children of the street lack emotional and psychological support of a family. 'Street children vary across cities and regions. But a majority of these children are boys.
It is the second and third category of children who are most vulnerable as they are easy victims of abuse, and inhuman treatment. They are often engaged in petty theft or prostitution for economic survival. Children runaway from their homes for a variety of reasons. Some may have faced traumatic experiences in their homes. Their parents may be abusive or have problems with alcoholism, poverty and unemployment. Some children leave home drawn by the glamour of the big cities.
It is also important to note girl street children are often not found in visible spaces and hence hard to trace. Age wise 40% of the street children are between 11-15 years while another 33% are between 6-10 years age group. A study found that majority (89.8%) of children live on the street with their parents/family.'
Street children mostly live in open air spaces. There are few to no shelters available in the cities for homeless children. Some may live in a temporary constructed hut or the house of their employer. Majority of street children work. Almost 50% of street children are self-employed as rag-pickers, hawkers, and shoeshine boys, while others work in shops and establishments. Their work hours range between 10-13 hours a day. These children are exposed to high health hazards as population and unhygienic conditions of living. Having no shelter they are constantly exposed to environmental conditions of heat, cold and rain.
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An estimated number of worldwide orphans by UNICEF in 2015 has been 14 crore. The study shows as follows: • in 1990: 14.60 crore. • in 1995: 15.10 crore. • in 2000: 15.50 crore. • in 2005: 15.30 crore. • in 2010: 14 crore. • in 2015: 14 crore. And, an estimated increament will be 2 crore by 2021.
Our Shelter Home (Mala Smriti Home) is not authorised for adoption.
Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) is a statutory body of Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India. It functions as the nodal body for adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country. For more information you can visit website http://cara.nic.in or press
CARA
The countries with the most orphans are as follows… India (31 million), China (20.6 million), Nigeria (12 million), Bangladesh (4.8 million), Ethiopia (4.8 million), Indonesia (4.8 million), Democratic Republic of Congo (4.2 million), Brazil (4.2 million), South Africa (3.7 million).
It is not a small issue whether orphanages are a viable solution for the children without home or not. An orphanage has become a need for orphans for their protection, development and growth.
As the Better Care Network video explains, "The research demonstrates, there are not bad and good orphanages. Rather, orphanages are simply not a good solution for children. Children grow up best in families. Foster families, extended families, and other arrangements.
While there has been an increase in the number of homes, we know that pressures still exist in finding the right placement for children. ... In 2018, more than one in 4 local authorities (44) do not run any children's homes in their area. There are many possible reasons for this trend.
Worldwide, residential institutions like orphanages can often be detrimental to the psychological development of affected children. Most children who live in orphanages are not orphans; four out of five children in orphanages have at least one living parent and most having some extended family.
