Prod to Sarva Siksha Abhiyan to cover street kids under RTE

GUWAHATI: The Assam State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (ASCPCR) has asked Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) to cover orphans and abandoned children, who have been spending their childhood at the railway station and streets of Guwahati, under the Right to Education Act.
The commission will soon send a report to the SSA about the sad state of the orphans and abandoned children roaming in the city streets without being enrolled in schools, said an official of the commission.
The commission, with the support from SSA and a voluntary organization, on Tuesday carried out drives in various pockets of the city to motivate such children and get them enrolled in schools.
"The ASCPCR is concerned about the children who are yet to be covered under the Right to Education Act, which was passed to provide free and compulsory education to every child in the country in the age-group of six to 1. We feel that programmes to motivate street children about the importance of education in life needs to be carried out, but at the same time there should be long-term planning to execute such plans. The public should be reminded about their duties to bring every child to school," said Chandan Barman, consultant for ASCPCR.
Apurba Thakuria, state programme officer of SSA (Assam), said the SSA is conducting a survey in Guwahati and once completed, it will reveal the exact number of children roaming the city streets without being enrolled in schools.
Most of the orphans and abandoned children, who took part in the motivation programme, expressed their willingness to get enrolled in schools. They, however, said hunger has forced them to beg and do other odd jobs.
"I left my home at Bilasipara in Dhubri district a couple of years back. I sell diesel around Guwahati railway station and earn about Rs 300 per day. Hunger had forced me to leave home," said Abinash Das, a little boy who does not know his age.
Actor Pranjal Saikia said, "Children are the country's future. If their potential is not used for the betterment of society, it cannot be transformed into constructive force."