è HISTORIC TREATMENT OF CHILDREN:
Child rights have ever since come a
long way, and many laws have been formulated for uplifting the status of
children in India.
v TREATMENT OF CHILDREN UP TO THE MEDIEVAL AGE:
§ In ancient Indian law, the child though
located at the bottom of a social pyramid, was bestowed with the protection of
society.
§ Children wear only the recipients of welfare
measures.
§ Persistent bias in the nurturing of children
in India is clearly indicated at t he historical records.
§ The medieval age, ranging from 11th
to 17th centuries, almost due to the arrival of Arabs, Turks,
Afghans and Mughals witnessed aggravated misery and deterioration in India.
§ Children faced adverse circumstances because
of overall economic deterioration.
§ Families, particularly in rural India, were
not able to afford nutritious food and other basic facilities for their
children.
§ Focus on basic education slowly faded away.
§ Elementary Education among the Hindus was
given to those belonging to higher castes.
§ Girls were rarely given education, and the
status remained inferior.
§ No steps were taken either by the rulers or
people to curtail the situation.
v TREATMENT OF CHILDREN DURING THE BRITISH
PERIOD IN INDIA:
§ The economic, social and political chaos
throughout the nation during the British rule, impacted the children very
badly.
§ The children of lower income group or lower
class of Indian society were particularly into trouble.
§ The atrocities towards children like
inflicting physical punishments were perpetuated during the growth of British
imperialism and children were oppressed in all possible forms.
v TREATMENT OF CHILDREN IN INDIA DURING FREEDOM
STRUGGLE AND IN POST INDEPENDENT PERIOD:
§ The great efforts undertaken by leaders and
other freedom fighters stimulated Indians and awakened them.
§ As a result, freedom struggle encompassed
activities which are called “Social Action”, to overcome the customary weakness
in society and develop self- reliant attitude in Indians.
§ Therefore, proper upbringing of the child
emerges as significant, came to be viewed as essential factor in the
restoration of nation.
§ Social concerns for children gained
significance during the formulation of Indian constitution.
§ For proper structuring and shaping of
children’s future in India, various laws were the initial effective steps that came
into being for creating suitable environment for children to grow and develop.
§ In 1923 a five-point declaration was adopted
by the “Save the Children International Union” as its charter.
§ It described the basic conditions as society
should adopt to provide sufficient protection and care for children. The Union
persuaded the League of Nations to adopt the same declaration next year.
§ The 1924 “Declaration of Rights of the Child”
was known as the “Declaration of Geneva”.
§ The Declaration of Geneva in its 5 chapters
identified and discussed the welfare of children and acknowledged the
responsibilities of adults for providing support to the right to development,
support, growth and protection to the children.
v ESTABLISHMENT OF UNICEF:
§ Second World War caused indescribable
suffering to children across the globe.
§ UNO on 11th December 1946
established a specialized agency – The United Nations International Children’s
Emergency Fund [UNICEF] – To provide can protection to the children who became
homeless and lost their family and any prospect for care and protection due to
war.
§ Presently UNICEF is known as United Nations
Children’s Fund.
§ UNICEF has been operating in India since 1969.
Since then, UNICEF has been an active partner of the government in organizing
various programs and activists for growth and development of children in India.
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