Our work in India...
With nervous eyes darting across the busy railway station the child slowly alights from the train. Uncertainty clings to his body and memories of the home left behind threatens to overwhelm, as the child lets the sights at the platform register. Treading into the platform, he is unsure of what awaits him and unaware that childhood as he knows it, may never be the same anymore…
What comes next? The station becomes the child’s new home and risks, exploitation and addiction become stubborn companions for life. We at Railway Children strive to get to such children before the streets get to them.
Our evidence suggests that at least 120,000 children of India who arrive at railway stations in India every year, are living this reality if not reached out early enough. In addition to being the world's largest democracy with the second largest population that hosts a vast repertoire of cultures, India also offers another stark statistic. The country has the largest number of street children in the world!
Poverty, a broken family, abuse, pressure to study, a thirst for adventure, a quest for livelihood, the lure of the film industry that thrives in cities like Mumbai etc, are some common reasons for children running away from home. India has the second largest rail network in the world and trains involuntarily become a quick and cheap mode of transport for these children, who move between cities in trains frequently landing at major junctions. These are children in need of care and protection – just like our children. These are children who have more vulnerabilities than we ever faced in our lives.
It is for these very reasons that Railway Children set up its first project in India in 1996 reaching out to 200 children. We continue to address the complexity of these problems by primarily collaborating with local credible and experienced voluntary organisations, networks and government. Railway Children currently partners with 13 organisations in seven states and one Union territory. We believe in the power of early intervention and ensure that children arriving at railway stations are weaned away before life at the platform impacts them irreversibly. In addition to reunifying them with their family and working to strengthen the quality of care in government run homes, we have also initiated source level interventions in some regions to address the causal factors that lead to a child leaving home.
Our commitment to our partners transcends finances as we collaborate with our partners in planning, implementing and sustaining interventions. We strengthen their capacities, at both the organisational as well as programmatic levels for effective functioning! Review and monitoring, workshops, conferences, exposure visits, fund management, training and advocacy support form crucial aspects of our partner support programme
Over the years, Railway Children has been steadily making a difference in the lives of more and more children and in 2009-2010; we benefited 16861 children in India.
We help create positive sustainable change in children’s lives.
We demonstrate models of best practice to the government to ensure the replicability and adaptability of simple yet effective practices.
We want to make India a child friendly nation. We will. Join us and we'll do it sooner!
