IntroductionStreet children are deprived of protective environment of family. Article 20 of United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes the right of such children who cannot be looked after by their own family to special care. The Government of India also accorded serious attention to provide protective environment of children in need of care including street children through enactment of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 and subsequent amendments to the Act. The Act in its Section 37 provides for establishment of shelter homes for children in need of care and protection. Significance of shelter homes and residential centres for street children is immense, given the exploitative, violent and hostile situations they face in cities. Shelter homes or residential centres act as safety nets protecting street children from sexual abuse and exploitation, physical violence and child labour
Unlike orphanages, shelter homes and other child care institutions, full-care and short stay residential homes provide an enabling environment to children to realize their potential to the fullest. An attempt is made to educate and help children develop intellectually at these centres. However, children who are not inclined towards academics are not pushed towards a definite career path. Children are provided opportunities to develop their hidden talents and skills. They are encouraged to pursue dance, puppetry, acting, painting and photography as well.Aasra was the first shelter home/Centre started by SBT. With a capacity of 50 it caters to boys of five to 18 years. The home was set up under the JJ Act, 2000.
Under the present project, the funds from the donor were utilised for operation of Aasra Centre.
Activitiesand Progress Update
Understanding the importance of ensuring a safe environment for children, SBT runs the Aasra Centre for boys rescued from the streets Besides serving the prime purpose of providing a ‘safe living space’ to children, residential homes offer a comprehensive package of services including food, education, medical care, mental health and psychological support. Children’s admission in the Centre is ascertained after they are duly presented in CWCs as per the provisions of the JJ Act, 2000. Identifying the unique background and needs of the child, individual care plans are drawn for each child in these Centre. Regular academic, psychological and medical assessments of the children are done to provide individualised education and health facilities. Full-time mental health professional and medical coordinator are appointed in the centre to provide psychological support, counselling and facilitate medical check-ups and treatment of children, respectively. The continuum of care and protection services provided at the residential centres have been depicted in the Figure below.
In the year 2016-17 a total of 776 boys were provided shelter in Aasra centre.
A snapshot of services provided by the residential centres from April 1, 2016- March 31, 2017 has been presented in the Table below.
Activities
No of children
New Registration
714
Total beneficiaries
776
Shelter provided
776
Restoration
592
Place to other NGO boys
134
NFE boys
674
Produced to CWC boys
714
Referred from CWC boys
714
Restoration follow up(Telephone)
58
First Aid
570
Medical check up(no. of children)
369
Referred to hospital
65
Hospitalised
11
Operated
1
Tetanus injection
109
MMR vaccination
0
Typhoid vaccination
45
Hepatitis 'B' Vaccination
0
Medical investigation
162
long term treatment
6
HIV test
5
Eye check up
1
IQ Assessment
8
Dental check up
0
Referred to MHP
19
Referred to Drug de-addiction
4
Group Counselling
112
No. of children(annual tour)
25
Apart from these activities children celebrated festivals such as Eid, Holi, Diwali, X-Mas, and national holidays etc. Children also went for educational trips and tours. A total Trips and Tours: 350 children went to Sattal and while about a 100 girls went to Manali.
The children also participated in various competitions and won numerous prizes. A child was second runner-up in HUDCO Painting Competition and received INR 7500 cash prize, around 10 children were participated in Goody beg program of PRC and two children won in inter Salaam Baalak Trust Quiz Competition.
Additionally, Mr. William and Ms. Kate (Duke and duchess of Cambridge) visited the Centre and interacted with children. Other donors and students from University of Delhi visited the Centre.
Case Study
Waseem, a 15 years old boy came to Aasra Centre in May 2016 on the direction of Child Welfare Committee. When the social worker at Salaam Baalak Trust interacted with child, he was not able to recall anything about his family. He only shared that he had worked in a hair salon in Old Delhi. He seemed to be grappling with some behavioural issues such as no eye contact, lack of social interaction, inability to make friends, loneliness, slow movement and unusual smile. In view of these signs the staff referred him to the Mental Health Team. The team and psychologist in particular interacted with, held sessions and counselled him. However, his overall condition worsened he became more aloof and locked himself in a room or began sitting in an enclosed almirah. The case was presented before the Salaam Baalak Trust Psychiatrist Dr. Amit Sen. The doctor diagnosed him with Catatonic Schizophrenia and recommended hospitalization immediately. His condition was also shared with the CWC and post their order Waseem was admitted to Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences, Shahadra for two months.
Once Waseem came back to the shelter after the treatment, there was a drastic change in him. He was doing very well and showed active involvement in all daily activities of the Centre. The social worker tried to trace his family but they were unable to do it. Thus, he was transferred to Apnaghar Shelter home for vocational training. At present, he is on medication and psychological therapy. He is also interning in a hair salon and performing very well earning around INR 7000-8000 per month.
SBT team plans to improve the existing quality of services at Aasra Centre through increased networks, better opportunities and staff capacity building. The team is making concerted efforts to reach more number of children in the coming year.
Street children are deprived of protective environment of family. Article 20 of United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes the right of such children who cannot be looked after by their own family to special care. The Government of India also accorded serious attention to provide protective environment of children in need of care including street children through enactment of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 and subsequent amendments to the Act. The Act in its Section 37 provides for establishment of shelter homes for children in need of care and protection. Significance of shelter homes and residential centres for street children is immense, given the exploitative, violent and hostile situations they face in cities. Shelter homes or residential centres act as safety nets protecting street children from sexual abuse and exploitation, physical violence and child labour.
SBT Residential Centres are Unique
Unlike orphanages, shelter homes and other child care institutions, full-care and short stay residential homes provide an enabling environment to children to realize their potential to the fullest. An attempt is made to educate and help children develop intellectually at these centres. However, children who are not inclined towards academics are not pushed towards a definite career path. Children are provided opportunities to develop their hidden talents and skills. They are encouraged to pursue dance, puppetry, acting, painting and photography as well.
Brief Overview of Different Centers
Centre Catering to Boys or Girls
Brief Overview
Aasra Boys
Aasra was the first shelter home started by SBT. With a capacity of 50 it caters to boys of five to 18 years. The home was set up under the JJ Act, 2000.
ApnaGhar Boys
It is a short stay centre, where 30 children come stay short duration and then they are either restored or posted in a long stay home. The home was set under the JJ Act, 2000.
DMRC Boys
DMRC Children’s Home was established as part of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s corporate social responsibility. The home houses 125 boys from the age of five to below 18 years.
Old Delhi Railway Station (ODRS) Open Shelter Boys
ODRS is an open centre catering to 30 boys. It is a short stay centre, where children come stay short duration and then they are either restored or posted in a long stay home. The home was set under the JJ Act, 2000.
Arushi Girls
Arushi was first girls’ shelter home under SBT. It is an initiative to offer 24 hour shelter to 50 girls between the ages of five years to 18 years living on the streets.
Udaan Girls
Udaan was initiated with the support of Give 2 Asia in March 2010. It started with eight girls and currently shelters 60 girls at a time.
Activitiesand Progress Update
Understanding the importance of ensuring a safe environment for children, SBT runs full-care residential homes for girls and boys who live on streets. Aasra, ApnaGhar, Old Delhi Railway Station Open Centre (ODRS OC) DMRC Children Home are home for boys; Udaan Home and Arushi are shelter homes/residential centres for girls. Besides serving the prime purpose of providing a ‘safe living space’ to children, residential homes offer a comprehensive package of services including food, education, medical care, mental health and psychological support. Children’s admission in the centres is ascertained after they are duly presented in CWCs as per the provisions of the JJ Act, 2000. Identifying the unique background and needs of the child, individual care plans are drawn for each child in these centres. Regular academic, psychological and medical assessments of the children are done to provide individualised education and health facilities. Full-time mental health professional and medical coordinator are appointed in the centre to provide psychological support, counselling and facilitate medical check-ups and treatment of children, respectively. The continuum of care and protection services provided at the residential centres have been depicted in the Figure below.
In the year 2016-17 a total of 2271 children (192 girls) were provided shelter in six shelter homes of Salaam Baalak Trust (SBT). Approximately 10% childrencame to open shelter directly or without Chile Welfare Committee(CWC) referral.
Salaam Baalak trust mental heath programme.
The key objectives of this project are to:
In the reporting period of the project, following key activities have been conducted by the project team.
Child Development Units (CDUs): The units provide children with neuro-developmental difficulties, a safe, nurturing environment and aim at early screening of mental health problems followed by carefully planned interventions. These were set up in September 2015. At present the CDU is covering eight boys with Autism Spectrum andattention deficit hyperactive Disorder.
attached is a report on this programme
Street children are deprived of protective environment of family. Article 20 of United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child recognizes the right of such children who cannot be looked after by their own family to special care. The Government of India also accorded serious attention to provide protective environment of children in need of care including street children through enactment of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 and subsequent amendments to the Act. The Act in its Section 37 provides for establishment of shelter homes for children in need of care and protection. Significance of shelter homes and residential centres for street children is immense, given the exploitative, violent and hostile situations they face in cities. Shelter homes or residential centres act as safety nets protecting street children from sexual abuse and exploitation, physical violence and child labour.
SBT Residential Centres are Unique
Unlike orphanages, shelter homes and other child care institutions, full-care and short stay residential homes provide an enabling environment to children to realize their potential to the fullest. An attempt is made to educate and help children develop intellectually at these centres. However, children who are not inclined towards academics are not pushed towards a definite career path. Children are provided opportunities to develop their hidden talents and skills. They are encouraged to pursue dance, puppetry, acting, painting and photography as well.
Brief Overview of Different Centers
Centre Catering to Boys or Girls
Aasra shelter home Boys
Aasra was the first shelter home started by SBT. With a capacity of 50 it caters to boys of five to 18 years. The home was set up under the JJ Act, 2000.
Apna Ghar open shelter Boys
It is an Open shelter, where children come stay short duration and then they are either restored or posted in a long stay home. The home was set under the JJ Act, 2000.
DMRC children’s home Boys
DMRC Children’s Home was established as part of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s corporate social responsibility. The home houses 100 boys from the age of five to below 18 years.
Old Delhi Railway Station (ODRS) Open Shelter Boys
ODRS is an open shelter catering to boys. It is an Open shelter, where children come stay short duration and then they are either restored or posted in a long stay home. The home was set under the JJ Act, 2000.
Arushi shelter home Girls
Arushi was first girls’ shelter home under SBT. It is an initiative to offer 24 hour shelter to girls between the ages of five years to 18 years living on the streets.
Udaan shelter home Girls
Udaan was initiated with the support of Give 2 Asia in March 2010. It started with eight girls and currently shelters more than 70 girls at a time.
Activities and Progress Update
Understanding the importance of ensuring a safe environment for children, SBT runs full-care residential homes for girls and boys who live on streets. Aasra, Apna Ghar, Old Delhi Railway Station Open Shelter (ODRS OS) DMRC Children Home are home for boys; Udaan Home and Arushi are shelter homes for girls. Besides serving the prime purpose of providing a ‘safe living space’ to children, residential homes offer a comprehensive package of services including food, education, medical care, mental health and psychological support. Children’s admission in the centres is ascertained after they are duly presented in CWCs as per the provisions of the JJ Act, 2000. Identifying the unique background and needs of the child, individual care plans are drawn for each child in these centres. Regular academic, psychological and medical assessments of the children are done to provide individualised education and health facilities. Full-time mental health professional and medical coordinator are appointed in the centre to provide psychological support, counselling and facilitate medical check-ups and treatment of children, respectively. The continuum of care and protection services provided at the residential centres have been depicted in the Figure below.
Future Plan
SBT team plans to improve the existing quality of services through increased networks, better opportunities and staff capacity building. The team is making concerted efforts to reach more number of children in the coming year.
pls see attachment for more details
Introduction
Most of the children living and working on the streets are exposed to multiple forms of exploitation and abuses having detrimental impact on their physical and psychological development.[1]To enable these children lead a normal and healthy life, it is essential to help them overcome the pain and psychological trauma of living on the streets. This realisation in the early stages of evolution of SBT, motivated the founding members to use theatre and out station tours to form rapport with street children and help them catharsis to move on and start their lives afresh.[2]
In the year 2015-16,the girls from Arushi were taken to a trip to Manali, Himachal Pradesh. The five day trip (June 19-25) to the picturesque hill station was both a refreshing and enriching experience for girls. In the bounty of nature, not only the girls but staff members accompanying them forgot about their mundane routine life and rediscovered themselves. A total of 38 girls and five staff members went from Arushi.
Activities
The girls left Delhi around noon on June 19. The hours spent travelling were long but interesting with short tea, snacks and girls interacting and bonding with each other. The girls reached the hotel ‘Mountainvilla’ in Manali (Nehru Kund) at 8 a.m. on the morning of June 20. The girls settled down in the accommodation and to give an official start to the activities envisaged during the trip.
The girls also visited Solang Valley and enjoyed the indescribable beauty and lovely weather of the valley. Through cable car rides the girls were able to get a breath-taking top view of the valley. Some girls donned the ‘pahadi’ dresses and got their pictures clicked. Another worth-seeing spot visited by the girls was Roerich Art Museum and Gallery. The girls walked a distance of 3 km to see the gallery. They admired Mr. Roerich’s novel ideas and exquisite works of art. The girls also visited theHadimba and Vashishta Temple.
Outcomes
The tour comprising an ideal mix of enriched learning and fun and frolic and paved the way for all-round development of children. The successful outcomes of the tour were:
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