KHULNA: Though it holds a repute for being a bustling commercial hub, the southern district of Khulna still has a long way to go when it comes to children affairs, as they are constantly at risk of abuse, school dropout and early marriage. Records from Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, BBS Multiple Indicator Cluster, show that the highest rate of early marriage in the country prevails in Khulna metropolis and its adjoining nine upazilas, reports UNB.
This has caused to a significant number of girl students to drop out from schools leading to lower literacy rate. The number of young mothers is increasing at an alarming rate in Khulna along with their children suffering from severe malnutrition. Amid this dismal scenario, the district administration has taken an integrated action plan under the slogan of 'No more young brides'. The issue of Khulna children welfare has come into the limelight following the recent tragic incidents of child labour Rakib being mercilessly tortured to death in the city's Tutpara area and the rape of an 8th grader female student in Rupsha's Char Beribadh area. Despite continuous protests against child abuse by civilians, parents here are deeply worried about the safety and welfare of their children. Statistics According to BBS figures, around 45.4 per cent of Khulna women, aged 15-19, are already married off against a national average of 34.3 per cent. The district law and order committee's monthly statistics highlighted 22 cases of women and child abuse in August 2015 along with 23 cases reported in July, 27 in June and 37 in May. Women and child abuse resistance committee in its August 2015 meeting said 39 cases of abuse were disposed of in August while 109 cases in July. However, 5,230 cases are still pending with the committee. Khulna's primary education officer Pervin Jahan told UNB, "Around 14 per cent of students, mostly girls, are dropping out from schools each year. And the poor homeless families mostly fail to regularly send their children to school because the children have to support their families in many ways." Medical officer of Khulna's Ma o Shishu Kollan Kendra (Mother and Child Welfare Centre), Begum Rowshan Ara Jahan said the child mortality rate in Khulna is around 8.27 per cent while that of pregnant mothers 0.45 percent. About 675 mothers and 408 children were catered to by our centre." Integrated Action Plan The mission is to make Khulna district free from early marriage so that no more young brides are seen. The pilot action plan is already underway in 31 wards of the city along with Dakop upazila and Atra-Gilatala union in Fultala upazila. Child protection committees, teenagers committees and parents committees have been formed in the pilot areas. Regular awareness-building seminars, aiming to stop early marriage, are also being held. A trainers' pool has been developed to provide training to teenagers and children on livelihoods.
Free biscuits are being distributed among students of 228 schools in Khulna to check their dropout. Contacted, Deputy Commissioner of the district Mostafa Kamal told UNB, "We'll continue our regular drive against early marriage. We've involved local representatives, charity and youths' organisations and the local media in our campaign to work together in making Khulna an ideal district for children." Md Nazmul Hasan, the women affairs officer of Dakop upazila, said, "We're in the process of making our upazila free from early marriage. We've sought the help of all local representatives here ...the child protection committee is also playing its due part." Fultala upazila's women affairs officer Farhana Yasmin said, "By the time, we've been successful in stopping the marriage of a 15-year-old girl at Dhopkhola village." DMS, a charity organisation, has also been able to save a young girl from early marriage in Gilatala area.