Children in need of care & protection: CNCP
Within a larger block of approximately 172m children at risk, India is estimated to have nearly 35m children in need of care and protection. Many of these either have no families, or cannot safely be repatriated to them, and they fall under the protection of the JJ Act. Their adverse childhood experiences (ACE) are often further compounded by the effects of institutionalisation, with long term outcomes noticeably worse than their peers in family based poverty.
Make A Difference has pioneered new research into long term outcomes for these children. Read on to learn more about our findings, and to see real life stories of the children of India.
About CNCP
Children in Need of Care and Protection (CNCP) are typically found in the following situations:
- In Families ‘At Risk’
- On the Street
- In Institutions
CNCP Groupings
The following are some of the Vulnerable Groups that comprise the CNCP:
- Street children
- Orphaned, abandoned and destitute Children
- Working children
- Abused children
- Children who are victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Trafficking
- Children engaging in substance abuse
- Children in conflict and disaster situations
- Children in families ‘at-risk’
- Differently-abled children
- Mentally ill children
- HIV / AIDS-affected / infected children
- Juveniles in conflict with the law
Age of Entry to Childcare Institutions
Drivers of entry to Childcare Institutions
Pioneering Research
Supported by DXC Technology, MAD is carrying out the first ever long-term adult outcomes research focusing on adults (Age 30+) who grew up in childcare institution in India. Planned to be carried out over 18 months, the research covers approximately 500 respondents across 5 cities in India.
Since no formal tracking mechanisms were ever instituted across the care system, the real challenge was finding adults who left shelters more than a decade ago, let alone building the trust to get them to open up and share their life journeys.
We hope to publish the final reports in July ‘19, but we’ve been generating and processing the data in batches, which is allowing us to publish new insights as they evolve.
The data on the right is still evolving, but we hope will give you an idea. Meantime watch this space!
10+ years in care
Missing
Dropout
Aftercare
Honours
Financial Aid
Live in Slums
Less than 15K
No formal training
in debt
Physical Abuse
Regulatory Landscape
A child is defined in India as any person below the age of 18 years except in case of heinous crimes, where the age group of 16-18 years is also considered an adult. India ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child on December 10, 1992. The key Indian ministry for matters related to children is the Ministry of Women and Child Development
CONSTITUTIONAL ARTICLES FOR CHILDREN
- Equality before law [14]
- Prohibition of discrimination [15]
- Abolition of Untouchability [17]
- Protection of life and personal liberty [21]
- Right to education [21(A)]
- Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour [23(1)]
- Prohibition of employment of children under 14 in factories, mines or any hazardous environments [24]
The Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act, 2000 establishes the principles, systems, processes and related statutory bodies to cater to the basic needs of children through proper care, protection, development, treatment and social reintegration. The main statutory bodies defined under the JJ Act are the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) to manage children in conflict with law, and the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) to manage children in need of care and protection. The Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO), 2012 establish further safety nets and protection systems.
OTHER IMPORTANT ACTS
- The Guardian and Wards Act, 1890
- The Child labour Act Act, 1986
- The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006
SHELTER Landscape
In 2017 we embarked on a detailed study to understand the Childcare Institutions (CCI) landscape in India, with the objective of accurately quantifying the number of children in institutional care and protection across India.
In the absence of compulsory registration of shelter homes, it was unclear how many shelter homes existed in India, or how many children were in them. The number quoted by various agencies ranged anything from 4 million to 172 million children. With registration now mandatory we are finally getting meaningful visibility, but many shelters are still unaware of the change in regulation, and we expect the numbers of known institutions to keep increasing over the next three years.
Our research partner 101reporters filed RTIs, leveraged grassroots networks of reporters and carried out independent verifications to create a definitive list of childcare institutions across India.
KEY FINDINGS
As of April 2018, we listed 9283 CCIs functioning across the country with 314,702 children. Of the CCIs, 7889 had been registered and the rest were either under process or disputing registration.
We also realised that many others were unaware of the 2015 JJ Act amendment that requires them to register, and estimate that another 6000 are likely to become known over the next few years. Overall we estimate about 15,000 CCIs operating across India, with somewhere in the region of 1 million children institutionalised.
SOLUTIONS FOR CHANGE
All adversity is known to be recoverable at any stage, given enough time and resources. At MAD, we are building a pioneering, holistic, age-transitional model that integrates individual care and attention for children from age 10 to 28, until they’ve achieved stable middle class outcomes as adults.
What Action will you take?
It is never to late to make a difference in a child’s life. If you ever see a child in strife, you can reach out to Childline on 1098 or the Police on 100, who will investigate. To make a difference on a larger scale, you can also help us spread awareness, volunteer, donate or join our team to make a difference.
Simplest of all, just be a champion for children! Sign up to join our care collective and help us build a passionate national family for children at risk.