Oliver Twists suffer as a nightmare unwinds at their shelter

The Balakara Bala Bhavana, a care and protection home for children in distress, located on Hosur Road is in an abysmal condition for long. The home which is supposed to shelter not more than 100 boys is currently accommodating over 130 children as its inmates.

The overcrowded boys’ home lacks basic facilities, and children complain about bad food and no medical care.The worst part is that most boys are subjected to regular beating by their care-caretakers.

These are some of the stark truths which a group of child rights activists have come across during their two-month survey at the Balakara Bala Bhavana. The child rights activists, who took up the survey, represent various non-government organisations (NGOs) of Bangalore, working for the betterment of underprivileged children.

The boys’ home is run under the department of women and child development, which has authorised the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) of Bangalore to monitor the day-to-day activities of the Balakara Bala Bhavana.

“During our two-month study, we found that the home is overcrowded, and children are staying in inhuman conditions. The home which is supposed to shelter not more than 100 boys, has more than 130 boys,” said a child rights activist, on condition of anonymity.

“The boys’ home severely lacks basic facilities and most of infrastructural facilities are in shambles,” the activist added.
The activists have expressed their concern over inmates being subjected to physical torture by their caretakers, which is a violation of child rights convention.

The survey also found that the home did not provide children proper food. Most children were malnourished and suffered from various diseases.

“Children complained that they were served sub-standard food, which often remains half-cooked. Most of the times, boys went with empty stomach, as the food served was not fit for human consumption,” revealed the activist.

Moreover, the children have no access to basic medical facilities, and most of them suffered from skin ailments, sores in legs and stomach infection.

“The boys have told us that doctors hardly come for medical check-up, and even if they come, they are hardly provided any kind of treatment,” said the activist.

The activist informed that the boys’ home lacked water supply, and the caretakers didn’t provide the children any soaps and antiseptics for bathing, which might be the reason for them developing skin ailments.

Most children in the home expressed their desire to go to school and pursue education. Moreover, the boys, who come from various corners of the country, often felt home-sick and needed immediate counselling.

“We feel that these children need regular counselling to deal with their mental and emotional trauma. The children also need a good translator, as they speak various languages, coming from various parts of the country, for effective communication,” said another activist.

The activists will soon send their recommendations to the Karnataka state commission for protection of child rights and department of women and child development, to improve the conditions in the boys’ home. Most inmates of the home are in the age group of 8 to18 years.