Vanitha N. Torvi, member of Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said here recently that the Commission was thinking of recommending the State government to start migrant children’s hostels in the State to provide continuous education to children of migrant workers who came from other States.
Addressing presspersons here, Ms. Torvi said that besides free residential facilities, these children could be provided with free food and education. The intention was to provide primary education to these children in their own mother tongues as they came from other States, she added.
“Most of the time, these children came along with their parents from other States and did not know the local language. Teachers might have to be brought from other States to teach them. However, this plan is still in the initial stages and providing education to children of migrant workers is a challenge. It will be better to have a migrant children’s hostel in every district,” she said.
Children of migrant workers from the districts from north Karnataka were being admitted to Kannada medium government schools in Udupi district, Ms. Torvi said.
Despite all the efforts of the departments concerned, there were about 9,000 out-of-school children in the State, while the number of out-of-school children in Udupi district stood at 54.
The Commission would launch a major drive titled — Shale Kade – Nanna Nade— to enrol out-of-school children in the district either on April 23 or 25. The drive would be launched with the staging of a street play emphasising the need for all children to go to school at the Service Bus Stand here.
The Commission had received complaints of children working as child workers at Malpe fisheries harbour, Nittur and Kundapur.
Officials had been direct to prevent any instance of child labour in the district, Ms. Torvi said.
Gracy Gonsalves, Deputy Director of Women and Child Welfare, and Vasudev Acharya, Secretary of Taluk Children’s Resource Centre, were present.
