What is the definition of a street child in India?
The reality of the street child is the naked and vicious face of poverty, sickness and exploitation. The tragedy is, that those who bear it are themselves innocent, lonely and frightened young children.
Street Children are those unfortunate children who basically:
· Have only intermittent contact with parents or family (usually mother or sisters) but live most of the time with other street children in the city streets, or are on the move. {There are numerous reasons for a child to leave home}
· Have been literally abandoned by their parents/relatives, found themselves on the street from the beginning because of family problems, or have chosen to leave home due to some kind of constant abuse.
· Those who have run away from home can further be separated into two categories:
· Those who have an unpleasant or traumatic home environment.
They experience family problems they are unable to solve: i.e., alcoholism, child abuse, ill treatment by stepparents, unemployment and poverty. Their tolerance level has been far exceeded, leading to the drastic decision to leave their family.
Those who have run away from home, who wanted to study/work but were not allowed and came to experience the exciting experiences of city life, glamourised by magazines and movies.
Religion of street children in India varies greatly according to area, but, in general, approximately 70% are Hindu, 18% are Muslim, Christian and other. Percentage of Hindu children is as high as 82% in Hyderabad, Indore & Bangalore. (Almost 50% of Hindu children belong to scheduled caste or tribes.)
82.7% of street children are boys. Girls are more difficult to trace but they are, by far, the most vulnerable.