Improved Care and Protection of Girl Children

Background Inspired by Mira Nair's film 'Salaam Bombay' in 1988, Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT) grew out of Nukkad – a street-based intervention programme that began working with street children in and around New Delhi Railway Station. A sense of security – be it a safe sleeping place, a small cupboard to store their personal belongings, a somewhat set pattern to life (e.g. regulated timings for food, study, play, roll call and going to bed etc.) gives the children an environment to be creative and grow naturally, yet instills in them the idea of discipline and hard work to achieve their dreams. Once the sheer struggle for survival is over, only then can they begin to articulate and work towards their future. The girls living on streets in particular require safe space to remain secured from abuse, violence and exploitation. Understanding the need for security, nutrition, and opportunities for girls rescued from the streets, SBT started a full-care residential programme called Arushi Children’s Home for Girls in Gurugram. This was the first home set up for girls by SBT. The girls on the streets are exposed to numerous safety and security risks ranging from abuse to exploitation. Thus, providing them a safe space to stay is paramount to the care and protection. ArushiChildren’s Home for girls is specially designed to cater to all aspects of a child friendly homeventilation, amphitheatre, and open space around the building for playing, classrooms and dormitories. Arushi is an initiative to offer 24 hour shelter to girls between the ages of 5 years to 18 years living on the streets. TheHome consists of 56 beds for children in 6 dormitories. Each dormitory has 12 to 18 beds with attached toilet and bathroom. There is kitchen and dining space. Around 50 girls usually take meals at the centre. There is a medical van for transport of children in need of medical service. Introduction With the valuable donor support, computer room and hygiene products are being funded at Arushi Home. The present report provides the impact of these services on the girls at Arushi. A half yearly overview of the above mentioned activities is presented in the following sections. Progress Update In the reporting period the funded components brought significant incremental changes in the lives of the girls.

1. Computer Laboratory: A computer laboratory has been established and is fully functional at Arushi. The laboratory is equipped with seven computers along with one printer. A total of 30 girls have started learning computers from Ms. Shivangi, the Computer Teacher. She is coming twice a week for two hours each day. Younger girls have started to learn the basics of computers, while elder girls are learning Microsoft office. Girls also use computers to complete their assignments and homework. It is heartening to see the girls taking the computer classes seriously and seeing merit in digital literacy. They are becoming more confident about the usage of computers. Challenge: There is low awareness among girls on appropriate and safe use of internet. Online safety will be an important topic that the Computer Teacher will cover in the future classes.

1. Usage of Hygiene kits: All girls in the Home are provided a hygiene kit comprising, toothbrush, tooth paste, comb, shampoo, hair oil, soap, body lotion and powder. The kit is providedto the children girls on a monthly basis. With the provision of hygiene kit, the Arushi team also explains the importance of maintaining personal hygiene. The hygiene kits have enabled girls to adopt regular hygiene habits. They have also inculcated a sense of responsibility to keep their hygiene kits and materials properly. Hygiene kit also forms an integral part of the services provided at the Home to maintain health of the girls.

Future Plan

In the coming reporting period, the Arushi team plans to cover advanced topics such as Microsoft Word and Powerpoint in computer classes including digital safety and secured online browsing. The team will also ensure continued provision of hygiene kits and create awareness on sanitation and hygiene among the girls.