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A file picture of a minor boy (face blurred to protect his identity) working inside an eatery in Dimapur. (EM Images)[/caption]
Eastern Mirror Desk
Dimapur, June 8: The Constitution of India, under Article 21, guarantees every child in the age group of six to 14 years free and compulsory education in every government-aided school. Moreover, no child is liable to pay any fee, charges or expenses while attending such schools. In Nagaland, if any parent comes across such schools charging any kind of fee, the matter can be reported to the Dimapur District Legal Service Authority (DDLSA).
This was informed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate and secretary of DDLSA Ajongba Imchen, while speaking at an event organised by Assisi Centre for Integrated Development (ACID) and National Domestic Workers Movement, Nagaland region on Saturday. The event was conducted at the Assisi school auditorium, Dimapur in collaboration with DDLSA.
Imchen spoke on the topic “Importance of education and the availability of the district legal authority” wherein he stated that parents themselves were responsible for child labour, and asserted that it is the fundamental right of every child to go to school, and not be forced to work in factories.
Imchen also said “parents produce children but do not know how to protect them and their rights.” He further urged the parents to protect the rights of their children by being aware of the rights available to them; and that it was the duty of every parent to secure the future of their child.
The director of CHILDLINE Dimapur, K Ela who was also present at the event, spoke on ‘child related issues’ and said the event was being held to spread the message that every individual has a role to play in protecting children from any kind of abuse. She stated that Naga society was not “child-friendly” and recounted an incident of an underage girl who had gone missing after leaving school.
The girl had returned home after two years, a month after CHILDLINE Dimapur were contacted by the girl’s mother. Ela said that the mother had initially approached the village council who advised her not to report the incident to the police. She was assured by the council that they would make every effort to find her daughter. Their search proved futile and the council refused to help her any further.
She then went to a police station where she was asked to get a document from the court. The ‘daunting task’ of approaching the court stopped her from getting the document. She then resorted to filing a missing person report in a newspaper where she was again asked to produce the same document. It was only after a friend informed her about CHILDLINE Dimapur that she approached the NGO.
CHILDLINE volunteers approached the school to get more information concerning her last day in school before she went missing. It was there that the mother learned her child was asked to bring her parent for ‘some issue’ and this prompted the child to run away. Messages were then sent informing about the missing child, which eventually proved successful. After the child returned home, Ela said that she was scared to go back to school.
Through the narration of this incident, Ela remarked that the environment we live in was hostile and not safe for children, and sometimes the school itself was not friendly towards children. Ignorance, she claimed was responsible for putting a child at risk and she urged the parents ‘to be aware of their neighbours to avoid untoward incidents.’
According to a survey conducted at a school among 195 class-8 students, 171 students said that their friends were into substance abuse or intoxicants, owing to early exposure from their parents. One-hundred eighty-two students replied that their friends were already in romantic relationships and 133 students said that young children were engaging in sexual activity. According to Ela, the survey exposed a critical risk of endangerment among teenagers.