Children In India
The Children
Despite India’s economic boom, for a vast swathe of the population the situation has not improved in generations. Hundreds of millions are trapped by caste and gender discrimination, and by the cycle of poverty--> child labour-->no education-->poverty. These people endure some of the worst conditions experienced anywhere in the world. World Bank estimates that 456 million Indians live below the poverty line of $1.25 per day.
India has about three times the American population living in one third of the space. Introduce intense poverty, famine, drought, natural disasters, AIDS, and malaria, and you have a recipe for tragedy and, most significantly, unaccompanied children. In such conditions, many parents die, leaving their children to a nation unable to take care of them. It is no surprise that children are often abandoned, particularly handicapped children and baby girls (whose dowries will put unbearable financial burdens on their parents). India has an orphan crisis, with estimates of the number of abandoned children exceeding 11 million. Many of these children are involved in crime, prostitution, gang related violence and drug trafficking.
On the streets, children are disturbingly vulnerable; evil adults will cripple orphaned children in order to use them for begging.
India also has the highest number of child labourers in the world, many of whom work in carpet factories. Of approximately 400 million children in India, estimates of the number of children 5 to 14 years in forced labour vary from 15 million to 100 million.
One third of the world’s poor children are in India. India has a higher rate of malnutrition among children under the age of three (46% in year 2007) than any other country in the world. An Indian child is more likely to be malnourished, have inadequate sanitation, not attend school, remain illiterate and marry underage, than is a child from Africa or any other global region. (UNICEF, 2005)
The Bethesda Children's Homes
New India Church of God operates Bethesda Children’s Homes (BCH) to address the needs of some orphan children in India (and Nepal). BCH provide a safe caring family environment for children from 4 years of age to young adulthood. The approach adopted by BCH incorporates the principles of:
Family
the children are cared for in same sex groups of around 15 to 20 (up to a maximum of 40) with personal care from a trained married couple (house parents) and assistant carers.
Culture
the children are placed in a home located (if possible) within their culture specific area. The facilities and resources are designed to achieve appropriate standards of safety and cleanliness while adequately reflecting the surrounding culture.
Nurture and Training
a holistic program supports the children’s development in all aspects of life including character, self esteem, manners, life skills, education, social, physical and environmental awareness. In teenage years the children are provided with a range of basic prevocational skills appropriate for young women (eg sewing) and men (eg household repairs) in their environment.
Spiritual Development
the children are raised in an environment that both teaches and models the Christian faith and enables them to participate in the varied activities of a wider church community.
This approach has proven effective in developing well adjusted and socially adept young people. Therefore it is favoured over an institutionalised or centralised model.
