The Street Children in Rajshahi

Toufik Ahmed

Street children are one of the most vulnerable and marginal groups in society. Street children are essentially boys and girls for whom the streets, unoccupied dwellings, wastelands, etc, have become home or source of livelihood. They are inadequately protected or supervised by adults. Basically, children on the streets are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
Rajshahi is one of the most rapidly expanding cities in Bangladesh. Here, thousands of street children suffer immensely due to poverty. They face various problems, such as hunger, malnutrition, abuse, exploitation, drug addiction, forced employment, trafficking, etc. Sometimes, they face physical beatings and underpayment by employers.
Here’s one voice echoing a reality: “At the age of only seven, I was expected to take care of cleaning, dishwashing, sweeping and all sorts of hard work. If I failed to do something, I was beaten so hard that sometimes it left scars on my body,” said Shoma, one of the girls living at Shaheb Bazar, holding back her tears while talking to this writer.
In the area around Rajshahi Railway Station, street children sleep in the open. They lay out some newspapers and plastic sheets on the ground, cover them with an old sari or kantha (quilt) on which they sleep.
 “Sleeping on the pavement, we face many problems. I have been physically abused and there is little way of protecting oneself. Then there are police beatings and environmental problems, like high temperatures and rain, and of course, sickness,” said Moina, aged 14.
Boys from the villages are more exposed on the streets. They are engaged as day labourers, or jobs like breaking bricks, welding or pulling carts. They run a higher risk of being trafficked and getting involved in taking or selling drugs.
In the city area, majority of street children are involved in activities that contribute to the life of the residents. They work as waste collectors, construction workers, domestic helps, vegetable sellers, workshop helpers, rickshaw or cart pullers, porters at transport hubs, and as labourers who unload trucks in the markets. Even on the Rajshahi University campus, the children contribute significantly by serving food to students and teachers in the canteens.
But the fact remains they face a lot of miseries. Due to lack of shelter, even during natural calamities, no access to healthy food, and poor water and sanitation facilities, they suffer from various health problems. Fever, cough and cold, stomachache, jaundice, diarrhoea, physical weakness, hearing problems, skin diseases, etc are common among them. They are often denied access to health services due to their inability to provide a permanent address.
Now, it is time to think about the street children. We urge the authorities to take necessary steps to improve the condition of street children in all our cities, including Rajshahi. This is possible if funds are made available for them. As poverty is one of the main problems, extremely poor families of Rajshahi may be subsidised so they don’t abandon their children. Aid agencies also need to work for these children more efficiently. If they are assisted by the government as well as by the local community, their miseries will be mitigated. In doing so, the condition of street children and the picture of poor people in Rajshahi will change.

The writer is a student of International
 Relations, University of Rajshahi.

Photos: Courtesy.

The Street Children in Rajshahi

Toufik Ahmed Street children are one of the most vulnerable and marginal groups in society. Street children are essentially boys and girls for whom the streets, unoccupied dwellings, wastelands, etc, have become home or source of livelihood. They are inadequately protected or supervised by adults. Basically, children on the streets are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Rajshahi is one of the most rapidly expanding cities in Bangladesh. Here, thousands of street children suffer immensely due to poverty. They face various problems, such as hunger, malnutrition, abuse, exploitation, drug addiction, forced employment, trafficking, etc. Sometimes, they face physical beatings and underpayment by employers. Heres one voice echoing a reality: At the age of only seven, I was expected to take care of cleaning, dishwashing, sweeping and all sorts of hard work. If I failed to do something, I was beaten so hard that sometimes it left scars on my body, said Shoma, one of the girls living at Shaheb Bazar, holding back her tears while talking to this writer. In the area around Rajshahi Railway Station, street children sleep in the open. They lay out some newspapers and plastic sheets on the ground, cover them with an old sari or kantha (quilt) on which they sleep. Sleeping on the pavement, we face many problems. I have been physically abused and there is little way of protecting oneself. Then there are police beatings and environmental problems, like high temperatures and rain, and of course, sickness, said Moina, aged 14. Boys from the villages are more exposed on the streets. They are engaged as day labourers, or jobs like breaking bricks, welding or pulling carts. They run a higher risk of being trafficked and getting involved in taking or selling drugs. In the city area, majority of street children are involved in activities that contribute to the life of the residents. They work as waste collectors, construction workers, domestic helps, vegetable sellers, workshop helpers, rickshaw or cart pullers, porters at transport hubs, and as labourers who unload trucks in the markets. Even on the Rajshahi University campus, the children contribute significantly by serving food to students and teachers in the canteens. But the fact remains they face a lot of miseries. Due to lack of shelter, even during natural calamities, no access to healthy food, and poor water and sanitation facilities, they suffer from various health problems. Fever, cough and cold, stomachache, jaundice, diarrhoea, physical weakness, hearing problems, skin diseases, etc are common among them. They are often denied access to health services due to their inability to provide a permanent address. Now, it is time to think about the street children. We urge the authorities to take necessary steps to improve the condition of street children in all our cities, including Rajshahi. This is possible if funds are made available for them. As poverty is one of the main problems, extremely poor families of Rajshahi may be subsidised so they dont abandon their children. Aid agencies also need to work for these children more efficiently. If they are assisted by the government as well as by the local community, their miseries will be mitigated. In doing so, the condition of street children and the picture of poor people in Rajshahi will change. The writer is a student of International Relations, University of Rajshahi. Photos: Courtesy.