Chennai: “I am 18, didi,” ‘chotu’ replied casually when enquired about his age. His gangly limbs and prepubescent face are a dead giveaway, but now that he said he is 18, there’s not much one can do, is there?
If you have walked around the streets of Chennai, then you sure would have noticed these kids selling pens, balloons, roses, drawing books and other day-to-day articles.
They claim not to have money to pay their school fee and some of us give in to their puppy faces and quietly drop Rs 5 or Rs 10 into their oustretched hand.
Some of us ignore them, some question them, some comment about how all this is one big scam, while some others buy the rose to impress our girlfriends.
All these children are mostly between the age group of 4-9 years. Who are these kids? Where do they come from? Do they really go to school or is it some kind of a racket?
Also, most of these kids do not take ‘no’ for an answer. They will nag you, follow you, pester you, until you take out your wallet. This shows that either they are desperate and helpless, or they are very well-trained and their ’employers’ do not take excuses.
UNICEF estimates that India, with its larger population, has the highest number of labourers in the world under 14 years of age. It has been normalised and an internalised personality trait of the larger Indian society, which tacitly continues to support the ‘chotu culture’ at the tea stall and within the home.
Child labour in India, somehow, has become a social norm that we accept and tolerate in society. This exploitative and abusive practice will continue unless society adopts zero tolerance towards it. “Didi, there is no money at home for me to go to school. Dad drinks and then beats up my mom and sister,” said Kamlesh, a 7-year-old who sells balloons on the streets of Vadapalani.
This sounds like a typical story, but just because its a story heard a million times, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. The problem can’t be trivialised because a lot of people face it every day.
So, the next time someone approaches you ‘demanding’ you buy those knicknacks, do not just ignore them or do not simply pay them to get rid of them.
Talk to them and see what you can do to help – which does not mean one has to sponsor their education or something, but one can most certainly get them in touch with someone else who can and will. A small step can make a big impact.
Article by Hunar Mehta