The Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) has asked the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) to allow children recently detained for begging and hawking to appear for exams.
The Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) has asked the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) to allow children recently detained for begging and hawking to appear for exams.
An NGO working with street children has claimed that the children were being deprived of school education following the CWC action, while the CWC claimed it was not through with the process of counselling the parents of the detained children.
In a rare instance, the MSHRC sent summons to the CWC after it received the complaint from the NGO.
Around two weeks ago, the women and child development department and the home department rescued 61 children who were found begging or hawking on the streets. The children were brought to the homes.While the parents of the children have demanded their release, the CWC has said that the children will be handed over to their parents only after both the children and parents are counselled.
The hearing of the case came up before MSHRC chairperson justice Kshitij Vyas. On March 16, the commission ordered the complainant to give the names of the school-going children and details about their school, exams, along with evidence proving that they were studying in those schools. The order said that the CWC should release the students so that they can appear in the oral and written examinations.
This release, however, did not amount to releasing them from the children’s home, the commission said. The CWC was also asked to give priority to the release of the students so that an academic year is not wasted.
The CWC will provide books and other materials required for the examination to the student. CWC chairperson Dr Shaila Mhatre said, “We respect the commission order and, as per the order, we have made arrangements for the children who want to appear for the school exams. We are not keeping the children forcefully in the children’s home. Our intention is very clear, and we want the children to go to school after they are released from here. We also wanted to counsel the parents because the children were begging or hawking when they were taken from the streets. After the verification, we have already released eight children. The others will be released after verification.”
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