Plan India is a Child-Centred Development organisation that works towards promoting Child Rights and improve the quality of life of vulnerable children. They have launched a campaign “Learn without Fear” against violence faced by children in schools and homes. This campaign is currently being launched in seven states (Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand, Bihar, Rajasthan, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh & New Delhi) in which Plan works, and will aim to directly improve the lives of millions of children in India.
This campaign is about preventing all forms of violence against children in schools. It includes corporal punishment, sexual abuse, neglect, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, bullying, peer-to-peer violence, youth gangs, use of weapons, and harassment in school and on the journey to and from school.
Plan India, has also set up a Children Advisory Board (CAB) wherein children from different stratas of society meet every month and discuss problems faced by them in schools, share their experiences and views and suggest solutions. They are also planning to work within communities, parents, teachers and children to end violence in schools.
Key findings of the study by Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India 2007*
1) 69 % children reported physical abuse, including corporal punishment, i.e. two out of three children were victims of corporal punishment
2) 62 % of the corporal punishment was in government and municipal schools
3) Most children did not report the matter to anyone
4) 53.22% children reported having faced one or more forms of sexual abuse
5) 21.90% child respondents reported facing severe forms of sexual abuse and 50.76 % other forms of sexual abuse
6) The states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and Delhi have almost consistently reported higher rates of abuse in all forms as compared to other states
* Study based on experiences of 12, 447 children, aged 5-18 years across13 states.
(Image courtesy: PlanIndia.org)
(Thanks to Kanika Kohli for the info)