India has a lot of diversity in customs, traditions, and languages of which Hindi is the most used. India’s current population standing at 1.21 billion, it is the second most populous and seventh most extensive country in the world. It is a vast country and among the top developing nations in the world. Despite the fact that the country has shown remarkable progress in terms of economic growth, with an average of 7.3% over the past five years. It continues to face similar challenges to other BRICS countries- high growth rates being accompanied by persistent poverty and inequality. This inequality is reflected in the low human development attainments of the countries most marginalized groups including casts, tribal and rural population, women, and children. Despite India’s significant progress in addressing poverty, access to education, the results have mainly been uneven. India’s children continue to face some of the harshest conditions anywhere in the world, with high malnutrition rates (stunting), child labour and forced begging, and childhood illnesses such as diarrheal disease.
There are 472 million children in India under the age of 18 years, representing 39% of the country’s total population. A large percentage, 29% of that figure constitute children between the ages of 0 to 6 years. In addition, 73% of children in India are living in rural areas, often have limited access to fundamental needs such as nutrition, access to healthcare, education, and protection. The high percentage of children living in rural areas often result in negative repressions in terms of children accessing fundamental rights. India’s commission for the protection of children’s rights (act 2005) (amended in 2006), has had some impact in promoting children’s rights in India. Notably eliminating child labour, protection of children, and young persons. The commission’s mandate is “to ensure all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms are in line with the Child Rights perspectives as enshrined in the constitution of India. It is clear that in India promoting children’s rights is a government priority, that is enshrined within the constitution and protected in legislation. Despite this, children in India continue to face challenges in attaining these rights, particularly those related to access to education, forced labour, and child marriage. Given that children make up 39% of India’s 1.21 billion population, it is imperative that the rights of these children are met.
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