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Over 350 million people in India live below the poverty line of less than $1 (about 75p) a day. Growing up in extreme poverty means children are denied their most basic rights of education, protection and a childhood free from exploitation and abuse.
In India, EveryChild works to prevent children from being trafficked into the sex industry or forced into child labour. We help children, living in slums, on the streets and railway platforms who are living without parental care. We also help prevent very poor children from low castes, especially girls, from becoming victims of violence and exploitation.
> Find out how you can sponsor a child in India
What is EveryChild doing to help?
Rescuing children from a life on the streets - Bangalore
Hundreds of children can be found on India’s railway stations wandering the platforms begging, alone and scared. Shockingly, 90% of these children have both parents - only 3% are orphans. EveryChild helps identify children in these desperate situations and provides safe shelters, helps rehabilitate those traumatised by their time on the streets and, where possible, re-unites them with their parents or extended family.
- 626 children living and working on the railway platforms in Bangalore were rescued and successfully reintegrated with their families
Kamraj - Havri, India
When Kamraj was 10, his father passed away, leaving his family in poverty. Shortly after, Kamraj ran away from home, hoping to find a better life on the streets. Instead, he fell into a life of drug abuse and violence, begging to survive at train stations across India.
Saving children from a life of bonded labour - Tamil Nadu
It is estimated there are an astonishing 15 million bonded child labourers in India alone. This harsh practice is widespread despite it being illegal. It happens especially in rural areas where landowners are able to ‘buy’ children to work on their farms, or as manual labourers, in return for a loan paid to the family.
These children are often separated from their families and are at high risk of being trafficked. EveryChild works to rescue children in these horrific predicaments to get them back into school and with their families where they belong.
- 108 children were rescued from child labour, including bonded labour, and are now studying in school
Putting an end to sex trafficking- Northern Karnataka
Tragically, it is very common for young girls from the lower castes, some as young as 12, to be trafficked into brothels where they are forced to work as prostitutes. Sadly, some parents know this is their fate, but in their poverty, they see no option but to let it happen.
EveryChild is determined to end the discrimination and exploitation surrounding these very young girls. We run child activity centres, providing children with an education they so desperately need. With the centres we aim to change attitudes, and in the long-term put a stop to girls being trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation. The child activity centres enable community volunteers to monitor all children in the village and identify those at risk of being trafficked. Women who have experienced the horrors of the brothels which they were sent to as just children form self help groups and teach children and their families of dangers of trafficking.
- Over 10,000 children from poor Dalit communities have benefited from 227 child activity centres giving them the opportunity to learn and play in a safe environment
What can you do to help?
When you sponsor a child with EveryChild you can help children living without parental care, their families and often their whole communities. For as little as 50p a day, you can make a real and lasting difference to a vulnerable child just when they need it most.
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