“Safety and security don’t just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear.”
— Nelson Mandela
Corona Virus pandemic had impacted on everyone’s life, big economies to a single person, all suffered the unwanted loss by the pandemic.
The studies done by many Agencies shows that the children have suffered most in this Pandemic and had drastic effects on their mental health. As the learning was disturbed by the shutdown of schools and the unavailability of facilities to continue online classes, there was a survey showed, that students of lower classes have forgotten what they had learned and now there are many chances that they will not be able to go back to school or to continue to study form the same grade.
Children who lost their parents and loved ones.
Losing your loved ones is a sad experience, but many children have faced the experience in this pandemic.
The spread of the virus caused the death of one or both parents. The reporter says that between March 1, 2020, and July 25, 2021, around 3,621 children had lost both parents to the pandemic, 26,176 had lost one parent, and 274 had been abandoned.
(According to the National Commission for protection of Child Rights) India.
News stories reported that the helpline number of Children had reported 90,000 SOS calls asking for protection from abuse and violence, health, child labour and missing and homeless children. News reported about children, sometimes infants left alone at home with no food, or found lying next to the bodies of their parents, Few found begging on the road for food.
Many young people(especially Adolescents) are in distress and suicidal after losing their parents to Covid-19. The death of siblings also affected their health.
- The following video will tell you more about the situation.
Affects-
Children are forced to be child labour to earn money for survival and food.
Hundreds of children are at risk of neglect, child marriage, child labour, trafficking or other types of abuse and exploitation if left alone with no caregivers. Schooling will be stopped for these children as no one will guide them and many will die due to poverty and health issues. Government must do something and arrange for a systematic foster care system with Government Sponsorship as soon as possible for the children orphaned by the pandemic.
Financial help from the government-
Government must find financial schemes and policies for the orphans.
As per the Government of India special “PM Care for Children” scheme for Covid-19 orphans, with a corpus of Rs. 10 lakhs for each when he or she reaches 18. The government will assist such children with school education and also PM CARES will pay Rs.5 Lakhs for health insurance until they turn 18.
Children who suffered their academics
“Knowledge is a key to poverty”
But only if knowledge is given properly.
Children who are studying at primary Government schools and live in villages and rural areas have suffered the most. The shutdown of schools and poor internet reach in rural areas and lack of facilities, affected education achievement in the short and long term.
In cities, the children of daily earning parents had to stop studies and now work for earnings. When the lockdown was imposed it shook the lower middle class and labourers, as there was no source of income and they suffered poverty and mental trauma.
Reports say that 30 per cent of students will be not returning to school as they have given up their studies and now working as child labour, due to the financial stage of their family.
Mental health-
Pandemic made children suffer mentally and physically. Many children, especially adolescents, faced depression and anxiety and had suicidal thoughts.
The pandemic made the children isolated which affected their ability to socialize and gather. The excessive use of social media made children stereotype and be more aggressive toward violence. The peer and academic pressure lowered children’s ability to learn and concentrate.
In my opinion, to cope up with this problem the government must recruit a team of efficient Psychiatrists and start a program where they can help these children to come back to a normal state. Schools must focus more on mental health than their syllabus and exams and the performance of individual students.
This pandemic is like a spectre that is hunting children. Many people lost their lives and many suffered. Children are not only living in emotional tragedy, they are at a high risk of exploitation. We must not lose hope!
Our hearted condolence to those families and dear children who lost their parents and loved ones.
This is a big change, we must fight for betterment!
Written by – Arnav Shreyash
