Childline India

Last updated

CHILDLINE 1098 is a service of Ministry of Women and Child Development. [1] Childline India Foundation is a non-government organisation (NGO) in India that operates a telephone helpline called Childline, for children in distress. It was India's first 24-hour, toll free, phone outreach service for children. [2] Childline 1098 service is available all over India. It is available in 602+ districts, 144+ railway stations and 11 bus terminals have Child Help Desks.

Contents

About

CHILDLINE works for the protection of rights of all children aged from 0 to 18. It is an initiative for rescuing and assisting children in distress. [1] Their particular focus is on all children in need of care and protection, especially the more vulnerable sections, including: [3]

It also helps children who are in need of care and protection. Childline number is toll-free - 1098 [1] is accessible all over India, and the caller can remain anonymous. [3] Childline receives an average a million calls a month, and CHILDLINE rescues about 400,00 children annually. As per 2011 census of India has over 4.35 million working children between of ages of five to 14 years. [2] Childline's role is limited to addressing calls, ensuring action including rescue, and presenting the child before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), a quasi-judicial body, as per the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, as rehabilitation is a complex and often unresolved issue in case of children who need further care and protection. [3] After a distressed child is rescued – either from the streets or from any form of employment or confinement – the rescue team of social workers checks if he or she needs medical attention like food or cleanup and provides these and later presented before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), composed of a chairperson and four members who are usually experts working in the area of child rights and the committee decides the future course for the rescued child like if the child has to be sent to a shelter home. For how long and if the child's parents or guardians are located, he would be sent back to his hometown and in addition the CWC can also order for counselling and rehabilitation of the child. [3]

History

Childline was first established as an experimental project in June 1996, by Jeroo Billimoria, a professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, at the department of Family and Child Welfare. [4] Subsequently, the Government of India established the Childline across India in 1998–99, [3] under Ministry of Women and Child Development, as an umbrella organisation to support and monitor services across India, while also serving as link between the ministry and various NGOs working the field and in year 2021 brought under administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs. [1] The move means that police personnel instead of social workers will handle the calls made to 1098. [1] The action will also help in preserving data sensitivity. [1] The Secretary of the Ministry functions as the chairperson of the Governing Board of the Foundation. [5]

In April 2013, a Childline Advisory Board in the West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya state became part of a joint programme by The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and Child Line India. [6] In May 2013, Ahmedabad Childline rescued 16 children aged between 14 and 17 years working various parts of the city. [7]

Childline India Helpline between Apr 2020-Mar 2021 answered 50 lakh calls and rescued or assisted 3.95 Lakh children in distress across the country including over 1 lakh children were provided COVID-19 related assistance.

In October 2020, Foundation had partnered with Uber to provide 30,000 free rides to their child care professionals as a support for reaching and attending to children in distress across country. [8] The association worth over ₹63 lakh covers for the period from October'20 to December'20 and will extend across all 83 Indian cities where Uber is operational. [8] The service also includes transport services to CHILDLINE 1098 personnel in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai, where its contact centres operate. [8]

The helpline is oldest for children in India. Also in Karnatka it is part of RTE (Right to Education) Rules. It is mandatory for every school and educational institute to display the Childline number prominently on its campus. Apart from creating awareness, the helpline also sends a message that anyone can call the number in case of any grievances. [3]

The Childline Helpline covers 598 districts in India and receives around 20% of global children's calls on helplines. [3]

Operations

Its head office is on the 11th floor of the Ratan Central Building in Dr. Ambedkar Road, Parel, Mumbai. In addition to Mumbai it also has regional offices in New Delhi, Kolkata, and Chennai and Bengaluru where all calls to 1098 are received 24*7 and later relevant calls are transferred to the collaborative/support NGO of the respective city and in case of need local police of city is informed. [3] [9] The support NGO's are local organisations working in the field of child rights and capable of immediate reach out for rescuing, rehabilitating and counselling children once they get a call from any of the five Child contact centres and also initiate a necessary action plan for fact-finding and intervention and for rescue operation if needed and they also tie up with various government departments including women and child welfare, labour, and the police for requisite support. [3] BOSCO (Bengaluru Oniyavara Seva Coota), APSA (Association for Promoting Social Action) and Sathi are the three organisations that work as support NGO's in Bengaluru and CRT is the nodal agency for Childline in the city which serves as the point of contact for the support NGOs and government departments. [3] APSA once getting a distressed call which are currently mostly pertaining to begging, RTE violations (such as children not getting admission in private schools), and child labour does an in-depth fact-finding study on the field and also collaborates with government departments in case rescue is needed and also provides other support services like medical and psychological counselling to the rescued children in relevant cases. [3] Calling the Childline helps in call getting recorded and officially documented and secondly, the national network of 1098 can be activated immediately if required especially in cases of trafficking for providing immediate support. [3]

Railway Stations Initiative

CHILDLINE Foundation had also set up 144 Child Help Desks in major railway stations across India until 2021 as separate railway initiative was felt given the number of children who run away or go missing or are trafficked for child labour and other reasons from these places and people can immediately and directly approach these help desks. [3] In Bengaluru, the support NGO Sathi works exclusively in railway station premises and has an office at Yeshwantpur railway station. The station is mainly connected to different parts of India. The NGO rescues around 30 to 40 children every month and 70 per cent among them are aged between 14 and 16 years as many of them had either run away from homes or sometimes they are brought by contractors for child labour and once tracked the organisation rescues them and sends them to their native places after counselling. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

Samaritans is a registered charity aimed at providing emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope or at risk of suicide throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, often through its telephone helpline. Its name derives from the biblical Parable of the Good Samaritan, although the organisation itself is not religious.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NSPCC</span> British child protection charity

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is a British child protection charity founded as the Liverpool Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (LSPCC) by Thomas Agnew on 19 April 1883. The NSPCC lobbies the government on issues relating to child welfare, and creates child abuse public awareness campaigns. Since the 1980s, the charity has had statutory powers allowing it to apply for help on behalf of children at risk. In the 1990s, the charity's publication, Satanic Indicators, fueled panic in social workers who went and accused parents and removed children from homes when they should not have. It operates a help line. The Paddington Bear character has partnered with the charity to raise funds for the charity. NSPCC operates telephone helplines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Childline</span> British youth phone counselling service

Childline is a British counselling service for children and young people aged up to 18 in the United Kingdom provided by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. They deal with any issues which cause distress or concern; some of the most common issues include child abuse, bullying, mental illness, parental separation and or divorce, teenage pregnancy, substance misuse, neglect, and psychological abuse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Esther Rantzen</span> English television presenter (born 1940)

Dame Esther Louise Rantzen is an English journalist and television presenter, who presented the BBC television series That's Life! for 21 years, from 1973 until 1994. She works with various charitable causes and founded the charities Childline, a helpline for children, which she set up in 1986, and The Silver Line, designed to combat loneliness in older people's lives, which she set up in November 2012.

World Vision India, headquartered in Chennai, is a christian charitable organisation, registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act of Tamil Nadu 1975. The organisation's primary stated goals are Child and Social Welfare.

The Concerned for Working Children (CWC) is a non-profit organisation based in Bangalore, India, and known internationally for its work in empowering children to become the key protagonists in solving their own problems. While eradication of child labour remains the key focus of CWC, the organisation opposes simple criminalisation and addresses related issues such as children's rights, gender equality, community development, education and advocacy. Founded in 1985, it has organised Bhima Sangha, a union of and for working children that now has 20,000 members, and launched the National Movement of Working Children. Internationally, it co-founded the International Working Group on Child Labour (IWGCL), and CWC child delegates have contributed to ILO conferences on child labour.

Prayas JAC Society is a Non-governmental organization based in Delhi, India. It was founded in June 1988 by ex-Delhi DCP Amod Kanth after a fire destroyed makeshift homes and ragged shelters built by children in the slums of Jahangirpuri in Delhi. Amod K Kanth, former Director General of Police(DGP) of Arunachal Pradesh cadre and DCP for Crime in Delhi, was posted in Delhi when the fire broke out and he visited the site of the fire as part of his duty and was concerned on welfare of children and this prompted the birth of Prayas in a one-room in Jahangirpuri with the help of friends from the Delhi Police and the Delhi School of Social Work in a small way.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Child Rights and You</span> Child rights organisation in India

Child Rights and You (CRY) is an Indian non-governmental organization (NGO) that works towards ensuring children's rights.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Women and Child Development</span> Ministry of the Government of India

The Ministry of Women and Child Development, a branch of the Government of India, is an apex body for formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to women and child development in India. The current minister for the Ministry of Women and Child Development is Annpurna Devi having held the portfolio since 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salaam Baalak Trust</span> Indian non-profit child welfare organization

Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT) is an Indian non-profit and non-governmental organization which provides support for street and working children in the Delhi-NCR. It was established in 1988 with the proceeds from the film Salaam Bombay! directed by Mira Nair. Programs at SBT include repatriation, providing education, basic literacy and schooling, full care facilities for the young, drop-in shelters for older children, physical and mental health care, life-skills education, vocational training, sports, job placement and counselling in HIV/AIDS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homelessness in India</span> Major social issue in India

Homelessness is a major issue in India. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines 'homeless' as those who do not live in a regular residence. The United Nations Economic and Social Council Statement has a broader definition for homelessness; it defines homelessness as follows: ‘When we are talking about housing, we are not just talking about four walls and a roof. The right to adequate housing is about security of tenure, affordability, access to services and cultural adequacy. It is about protection from forced eviction and displacement, fighting homelessness, poverty and exclusion. India defines 'homeless' as those who do not live in Census houses, but rather stay on pavements, roadsides, railway platforms, staircases, temples, streets, in pipes, or other open spaces. There are 1.77 million homeless people in India, or 0.15% of the country's total population, according to the 2011 census consisting of single men, women, mothers, the elderly, and the disabled. However, it is argued that the numbers are far greater than accounted by the point in time method. For example, while the Census of 2011 counted 46,724 homeless individuals in Delhi, the Indo-Global Social Service Society counted them to be 88,410, and another organization called the Delhi Development Authority counted them to be 150,000. Furthermore, there is a high proportion of mentally ill and street children in the homeless population. There are 18 million street children in India, the largest number of any country in the world, with 11 million being urban. Finally, more than three million men and women are homeless in India's capital city of New Delhi; the same population in Canada would make up approximately 30 electoral districts. A family of four members has an average of five homeless generations in India.

Child sexual abuse laws in India have been enacted as part of the child protection policies of India. The Parliament of India passed the 'Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences Bill (POCSO), 2011' regarding child sexual abuse on 22 May 2012, making it an Act. A guideline was passed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, India. The rules formulated by the government in accordance with the law had also been notified on the November 2012 and the law had become ready for implementation. There have been many calls for more stringent laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeroo Billimoria</span> Indian businesswoman

Jeroo Billimoria is an Indian social entrepreneur and the founder of several international NGOs. Her work has been featured in several books. Her most recent initiatives include Child and Youth Finance International (CYFI), which Jeroo founded in 2011, Aflatoun, Childline India Foundation and Child Helpline International. Her most recent initiative is Catalyst 2030.

Butterflies is a registered voluntary organization that has been operating in Delhi since 1989. The organization focuses on assisting vulnerable children, particularly those on the streets. By employing a rights-based and participatory methodology, Butterflies aims to provide education and life skills to these children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Childline South Africa</span> South African youth counselling service

Childline South Africa is a non-profit organisation which works to protect children from violence and further the culture of children's rights in South Africa. Childline runs a national, 24-hour, toll-free telephone counselling service for children and adults, handling over 1 million calls annually. In addition to the Crisis Line telephone counseling service, Childline also offers services such as online counseling, training programmes for continuous professional development, training on court preparation and workshops on child law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sankalp India Foundation</span>

Sankalp India Foundations is a Bangalore-based non-government organisation. It is a youth organisation working for blood donation, thalassemia, bone marrow transplantation and disaster relief.

Vandrevala Foundation is an NGO established by Cyrus Vandrevala and Priya Vandrevala in 2008. In 2009, the foundation launched the "Mental Health - India" initiative to raise awareness and provide services for emotionally distressed individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prerana</span> Indian non-governmental organization

Prerana is a non-governmental organization (NGO) that works in the red-light districts of Mumbai, India to protect children vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking. It was established in 1986.

The Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) is a governmental program implemented by the Government Of India to help secure the safety of children, with a special emphasis on children in need of care and protection, juveniles in conflict or contact with the law and other vulnerable children. Its primary purpose is to create a central structure to provide oversight and standardization for pre-existing and evolving child protection schemes in India. Proposed in 2006 and implemented in 2009, the ICPS is administered at the state level by state child protection committees and societies and at the district level by district child protection societies, among other institutions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rekha Mishra</span> Indian police officer (born 1986)

Rekha Mishra is an Indian police officer from Railway Protection Force(RPF) who was recognised for finding hundreds of lost children. She was awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar in 2018.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Police personnel will now answer Childline 1098 calls". The Hindu. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Labour Ministry Government of India" (PDF). Labour Ministry. 21 May 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Pinglay, Prachi (28 January 2020). "All about Childline 1098: How it helps children in distress". Citizen Matters, Bengaluru. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  4. "History". Childline. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  5. "Childline Service". Ministry of Women and Child Development. Archived from the original on 17 May 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  6. "Childline Advisory Board formed for Garo Hills'". The Morung Express. 25 April 2013. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  7. "16 children rescued from city eateries". DNA India. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 "CHILDLINE 1098 partners with Uber to provide free rides to child care profession". Mint. 14 October 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  9. "Contact Us." Childline India. Retrieved on 21 February 2017. "CHILDLINE India Foundation 406, Sumer Kendra, 4th floor, P. B. Marg, Worli, Mumbai 400 018, Maharashtra"