Thirty seconds of your time could save a child’s life…..Joanna Lobo
CST commuters will have a chance to learn about child protection, finds Joanna Lobo
Today, while walking through CST for your train, spare a moment to stop and listen to one of the Bal Prafulta volunteers vying for your attention. These few moments could help save the life of an innocent child. In a bid to spread general awareness about child protection, the nine-year-old NGO Bal Prafulta has organised a campaign called Me Lakhat Ek.
“We want to tell people that they may be one person but they are responsible for the protection of this country’s children. We need to realise that it is through our participation that the future of these abandoned children can be saved,” says Santosh Shinde, executive director, Bal Prafulta. The campaign which begins today, will feature posters, banners and pamphlets that will be distributed to commuters at the station.
CST was chosen as it is the hub of local and outstation commuter traffic throughout the day. “According to a baseline survey we conducted, around 30 to 40 abandoned children are found there every week,” adds Shinde. The campaign will see volunteers hand out pamphlets and conducting basic surveys to gauge the general awareness of people when it comes to reporting lost children. The pamphlets will have ten simple ways a person can contribute towards child protection and safety.
Bal Prafulta has roped in college students as volunteers. In its aim to make it a civil society service, the organisation will be enlisting help from police officers, boot polish workers, cleaners and other station regulars—all of whom will sport badges and carry posters about the campaign. “All we want is a minute of your time,” says Shinde, who has trained the volunteers to be able to give across basic information in even 30 seconds, if need be. What is child rights, what rights children have, what can people do if they come across an abandoned child, how to follow up on the children: are some of the topics the volunteers hope to get across to people. “If we can target at least 5% of the people during these days, it will be worth it. We want people to understand and become aware, contribution can happen later,” says Shinde.
Me Lakhat Ek will run from 8am to 11pm for three days, and is a precursor to a bigger event that will be held in summer.