Skip to main content

Children's day? Pandemic exposes faultlines, class divisions 'bravely borne' by kids

By Simi Mehta, Saswati Paik, Arjun Kumar*

November 14 marks the birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru, and is celebrated as the Children’s Day in India. Unfortunately, the inspirational entry-point to advocate, promote and celebrate children's rights, which should translate into dialogues and actions to build a better world for children remains far-fetched.
Each year this day, we do not fail to evoke Chacha Nehru’s remarks, "The children of today will make the India of tomorrow. The way we bring them up will determine the future of the country.” But as the pandemic has vividly demonstrated, this remains largely symbolic. The pandemic-induced lockdown, which pushed people indoors, children continue to be locked down because of the prolonged closure of the schools. 
There is no denying that it is imperative to keep the schools shut in view of the pandemic, else we would open up floodgates of coronavirus disease, to an extent that our health systems would be unable to handle.
Since March 2020, the schools in India have remained closed for teaching due to the pandemic. According to the United Nations, by mid of April, almost 1.58 billion children and youth, from pre-primary to higher education, in 200 countries across the globe were affected by the pandemic in various ways. It cautioned and exhorted the member-states to prevent a learning crisis from becoming a generational catastrophe requires urgent action from all.
According to the data available from Unified District Information on School Education (U-DISE) of the Ministry of Education, Government of India, there are 1,795,240 schools in India. Out of all schools, 83% provide primary education facilities (grades I to V) whereas around 50% provide education till VIIIth grade. There are only 28% schools that provide school education till Xth grade and only 21% provide school education till XIIth grade. This data indicates that majority of our children do not have access to education beyond VIIIth grade.
More than 70% schools in India are either fully managed by the government or any department under the government or by autonomous bodies created under the central government or established by state governments in order to meet a specified purpose. On the other hand, around 50,000 schools are residential and run by various departments of government of India including Tribal Welfare Department and Social Welfare Department. In many such residential schools, the residential facility is provided with a bare minimum need of the children.
The persistent question that arises is: What will happen to those children studying in rural areas having poor facilities in schools and sporadic access to any formal education during this prolonged school closure? This is a question that deserves immediate and urgent attention of the healthcare organisations, policymakers, practitioners, as well as of children’s welfare institutions, because we cannot afford to risk the lives of the next generations of leaders and citizens to pandemics and multitude of associated challenges.
A large section of the school-going children has turned towards the online modes of education introduced to them by their schools. But unfortunately, there is a large population of children who have lost out on their regular education, especially those residing in the rural areas and going to the government schools. 
Additionally, there are instances of children who have had to leave their schools and accompany their migrant parents in their long walk from the cities to the villages. The availability of internet services, electricity and working mobile data connection in the rural areas is well-known.
Majority of girl children in rural India go to government schools. Girls drop out from schools because of several reasons including family and social norms. However, many reasons lie within the schools only such as lack of transport facility, lack of functional toilets in schools and absence of female teachers in schools. A report by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) published in 2018 stated that 39.4% of girls of 15-18 years across India drop out of education.
Most of the girls who drop out do not end up earning; they are forced to perform household chores or even resort to begging, the report claims. In this scenario, we need to ensure the physical and mental health, security and education of the girl children during this prolonged school closure. Lack of appropriate care to them, if continued, may well lead to a generational catastrophe. 
What will happen to children studying in rural areas having sporadic access to any formal education during the prolonged school closure?
The pandemic has exposed the faultlines and class division of the society, the impact of which has been bravely borne by the children. On the one hand, we have affluent families smoothly facilitating the transition to virtual learning by arranging stable and fast internet for their children, and ensuring them with mobile data and devices. They are being inculcated with new educational skills and personality development activities to boost their self-confidence.
On the other hand, there are families who can somehow afford a spare mobile phone but find themselves in a fix when they have more than one child in need for it. There is another large section of families who do not and cannot own a basic smart phone- which is indispensable for online learning. Their children continue to ‘enjoy’ an extended vacation, being excluded from formal schooling system, in the hope of catching up with the conventional mode of teaching and learning.
There are other challenges that are being increasingly borne by the children -- their overall health is in a jeopardy. For instance, lack of outdoor sports, and other extra co-curricular activities are leading to monotony of schedules for them, as they spend long screen hours playing video games, and/or watching videos. Obesity, eyesight problems, and emotional instability, aggressive behaviours, frustration and anger, are emerging as persistent challenges for children. 
Impending board exams at higher secondary and senior secondary school levels have added to the insecurities and anxieties among the students already suffering with a mix of aforementioned challenges. 
It is feared that a prolonged academic detachment may have multiple consequences on children such as drastic dropout from schools, increase in child labour, child marriages, child trafficking, child abuse at homes, cyberbullying and substance addiction. Girl children would be particularly impacted, as they are already deprived of decent educational opportunities for many reasons including gender specific norms and practices existing in the society.
The closure of the educational institutions especially the schools will hinder the provision of essential services to children and communities, including access to nutritious food. The comprehensive development of children’s personalities remains compromised, when we are unable to provide them with balanced diets and nutritious food. 
This is imminent from the deplorable ranking of India in Global Hunger Index (GHI)- at 94 out of 107 countries. The under-five stunting, wasting and mortality reveals challenges in providing balanced diets and nutritious food to women and children. And all this is despite the large web of Anganwadi centers in the country meant to care for children from economically marginalized families. It is worth mentioning that the GHI 2020 has not accounted for the Covid-19 challenges, and we might as well see a further worsening in the situation in 2021.
When the fulfillment of the basic needs, rights and entitlement of the children remain a distant dream, ‘celebrating’ children’s day reveals a mockery of those for whom it is celebrated. Even before the outbreak of the worldwide pandemic, a learning crisis among children was identified by the World Bank; wherein around 53% of children in low- and middle-income countries were found to be living in ‘learning poverty’.
Millions of more children, therefore, stand at the risk of being adversely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and its aftermath, and this is especially obscure for those in the vulnerable and disadvantaged socio-economic groups. Therefore, children’s day must extend to advocacy, promotion, and celebration of childhood, which would translate into dialogues and actions to build a better world for children.
---
*Dr Simi Mehta is CEO and Editorial Director, Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI), Dr Saswati Paik is Faculty, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru; Dr Arjun Kumar is Director, IMPRI

Comments

TRENDING

Aurangzeb’s last will recorded by his Maulvi: Allah shouldn't make anyone emperor

By Mohan Guruswamy  Aurangzeb’s grave is a simple slab open to the sky lying along the roadside at Khuldabad near Aurangabad. I once stopped by to marvel at the tomb of an Emperor of India whose empire was as large as Ashoka the Great's. It was only post 1857 when Victoria's domain exceeded this. The epitaph reads: "Az tila o nuqreh gar saazand gumbad aghniyaa! Bar mazaar e ghareebaan gumbad e gardun bas ast." (The rich may well construct domes of gold and silver on their graves. For the poor folks like me, the sky is enough to shelter my grave) The modest tomb of Aurangzeb is perhaps the least recognised legacies of the Mughal Emperor who ruled the land for fifty eventful years. He was not a builder having expended his long tenure in war and conquest. Towards the end of his reign and life, he realised the futility of it all. He wrote: "Allah should not make anyone an emperor. The most unfortunate person is he who becomes one." Aurangzeb’s last will was re...

Beyond his riding skill, Karl Umrigar was admired for his radiance, sportsmanship, and affability

By Harsh Thakor*  Karl Umrigar's name remains etched in the annals of Indian horse racing, a testament to a talent tragically cut short. An accident on the racetrack at the tender age of nineteen robbed India of a rider on the cusp of greatness. Had he survived, there's little doubt he would have ascended to international stature, possibly becoming the greatest Indian jockey ever. Even 46 years after his death, his name shines brightly, reminiscent of an inextinguishable star. His cousin, Pesi Shroff, himself blossomed into one of the most celebrated jockeys in Indian horse racing.

PUCL files complaint with SC against Gujarat police, municipal authorities for 'unlawful' demolitions, custodial 'violence'

By A Representative   The People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has lodged a formal complaint with the Chief Justice of India, urging the Supreme Court to initiate suo-moto contempt proceedings against the police and municipal authorities in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The complaint alleges that these officials have engaged in unlawful demolitions and custodial violence, in direct violation of a Supreme Court order issued in November 2024.

How the slogan Jai Bhim gained momentum as movement of popularity and revolution

By Dr Kapilendra Das*  India is an incomprehensible plural country loaded with diversities of religions, castes, cultures, languages, dialects, tribes, societies, costumes, etc. The Indians have good manners/etiquette (decent social conduct, gesture, courtesy, politeness) that build healthy relationships and take them ahead to life. In many parts of India, in many situations, and on formal occasions, it is common for people of India to express and exchange respect, greetings, and salutation for which we people usually use words and phrases like- Namaskar, Namaste, Pranam, Ram Ram, Jai Ram ji, Jai Sriram, Good morning, shubha sakal, Radhe Radhe, Jai Bajarangabali, Jai Gopal, Jai Jai, Supravat, Good night, Shuvaratri, Jai Bhole, Salaam walekam, Walekam salaam, Radhaswami, Namo Buddhaya, Jai Bhim, Hello, and so on. A soft attitude always creates strong relationships. A relationship should not depend only on spoken words. They should rely on understanding the unspoken feeling too. So w...

Haven't done a good deed, inner soul is cursing me as sinner: Aurangzeb's last 'will'

Counterview Desk The Tomb of Aurangzeb, the last of the strong Mughal emperors, located in Khuldabad, Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, has this epitaph inscribed on it: "Az tila o nuqreh gar saazand gumbad aghniyaa! Bar mazaar e maa ghareebaan gumbad e gardun bas ast" (the rich may well construct domes of gold and silver on their graves. For the poor folks like me, the sky is enough to shelter my grave).

CPM’s evaluation of BJP reflects its political character and its reluctance to take on battle against neo-fascism

By Harsh Thakor*  A controversial debate has emerged in the revolutionary camp regarding the Communist Party of India (Marxist)'s categorization of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Many Communists criticize the CPM’s reluctance to label the BJP as a fascist party and India as a fascist state. Various factors must be considered to arrive at an accurate assessment. Understanding the original meaning and historical development of fascism is essential, as well as analyzing how it manifests in the present global and national context.

State Human Rights Commission directs authorities to uphold environmental rights in Vadodara's Vishwamitri River Project

By A Representative  The Gujarat State Human Rights Commission (GSHRC) has ordered state and Vadodara municipal authorities to strictly comply with environmental and human rights safeguards during the Vishwamitri River Rejuvenation Project, stressing that the river’s degradation disproportionately affects marginalized communities and violates citizens’ rights to a healthy environment.  The Commission mandated an immediate halt to ecologically destructive practices, rehabilitation of affected communities, transparent adherence to National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders, and public consultations with experts and residents.   The order follows the Concerned Citizens of Vadodara coalition—environmentalists, ecologists, and urban planners—submitting a detailed letter to authorities, amplifying calls for accountability. The group warned that current plans to “re-section” and “desilt” the river contradict the NGT’s 2021 Vishwamitri River Action Plan, which prioritizes floodpla...

How polarization between different ideological trends within the communist movement sharpened in India

By Harsh Thakor*  This article is a rejoinder to A Note on Slogans of “Left Unity,” “Unity of the Communist Revolutionaries” and “Mass Line” by Umair Ahmed, published on the Nazariya blog .

Vadodara citizens urge authorities to adhere to environmental mandates in Vishwamitri River Rejuvenation Project

By A Representative   A coalition of environmental activists, ecologists, and urban planners in Vadodara has issued an urgent appeal to state and municipal authorities, demanding strict compliance with court-mandated guidelines for the upcoming Vishwamitri River rejuvenation project. Scheduled to commence in March 2025, the initiative aims to mitigate flooding and restore the river, but citizens warn that current plans risk violating National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders and jeopardizing the river’s fragile ecosystem, home to endangered species like crocodiles and Indian Softshell Turtles.  

Implications of deaths of Maoist leaders G. Renuka and Ankeshwarapu Sarayya in Chhattisgarh

By Harsh Thakor*  In the wake of recent security operations in southern Chhattisgarh, two senior Maoist leaders, G. Renuka and Ankeshwarapu Sarayya, were killed. These operations, which took place amidst a historically significant Maoist presence, resulted in the deaths of 31 individuals on March 20th and 16 more three days prior.