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Showing posts from 2017

Urban Slum : The Harsh Reality Of Metro Cities

Mrs and Mr Tiwari moved to Gurugram as a result of a company transfer but it was tension all around. The family was worried about living in the new community. It was obvious for them to be anxious about living in a new locality and that too in crime prone Gurugram, but the reason for the anxiousness was not that obvious.  The couple was worried about getting a good "bai" or maid in the new society. The locality in which they moved belonged to one of the most urbanized areas of Gurugram but this does not restrict them to get a good maid. On the other hand, it was very easy to get a good maid at reasonable salary because 100% of the residents employed at least one maid. Lot of people were even having drivers, gardeners, babysitters etc.  It was equally important and mandatory to have domestic helps as to drink water to survive.      Now what made easy for Tiwari family   to find maid in the most urbanized societies       of a metro city? It was

Elder Sister : Babysitter By Destiny

Laxmi, 10 years old girl is not present at her home on Monday afternoon. It is obvious that girl of this age might be in school or playing with her friends or have gone for some hobby classes, but destiny had some other plans for her. She is not at home because she went to fetch water from the nearby corporation tap, also she carries her 6 months brother in her lap as there is no one to take care of him at home. This is a daily routine for Laxmi living in one of the underprivileged area of Pune.  Similar is the state of Madhu, 12 years old girl from one of the Noida's marginalized community. On the same Monday afternoon, she is cooking food for her two siblings as mother is in the field collecting waste.  In our country, girls have always been bearing responsibilities of being a mother, wife, girlfriend etc., and these roles/responsibilities are widely discussed, sometimes praised and most of the times accepted as a fact.  But there is one role silently played by young girls

Chotu, 1 Chai La : A Tragedy Called Child Labour

On a normal day, a guy sitting on a bench of a small tapri frustrated with his annual appraisal or break-up wants another cup of tea so he calls "chotu" 1 aur chai la. The above scenario is not new to many of us and millions of such " chotus " are living near us. We encounter them daily when they bring us tea, provide sutta near college campuses, clean the table at restaurant, iron clothes in hostel, repair punctures etc. but we tend to accept their horrible state very easily. On seeing them work, some people sympathize and some tends to ignore but very few people actually take any step to improve their condition. Did we ever realize why these chotus are here and if we can do anything to improve their conditions? As per the child labour law( Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 ) in India, any child of age  less than 14 cannot work in any occupation (hazardous or non-hazardous). The only exceptions are 1)if the work location is a fam