I seem to attract a certain segment of people, street-kids, destitutes, invalids, people without food,shelter and the very basic amenities every human is entitled to. On my part, I am very comfortable with them and it must be very apparent since I get approached all too often. By the way, I am not talking about "beggars" one comes across traffic signals, these professionals are the easiest to please. As my very good friend says, anything that can be bought at a price however high is cheaper than that which requires your feelings and gestures.
But that is not the case with the people i am now talking about ,its not just money, they demand something more. For instance, there is this resident of our corner of the city, who would sometimes want soft-drink or ice-cream- not the sort of request a mentally-handicapped destitute should be making but the fact is that he gets it every time and its just not me or my friends. Most of the guys hanging around that area usually give in to his demand.
But I seem to attract far more people in need. Just a couple of hours back, 10-10:30 PM, these two kids stopped my bike, they wanted a lift home. Now, thats something I do nearly everyday but the problem in this case was the fact that I would have to go back quite some distance to drop them. However, i did give in to their insistence, and on the way learnt much about them. They were brothers, the elder one was 12 year old but was being guardian to his 10 year old sibling. Both of them worked at a food stall, couldn't be earning more than Rs. 30 combined but there was an air of confidence in them that made me think that these kids should be in school! I did tell them that I would make arrangements for schooling but don't have a clue on how to go about!
And yes,while returning I realized how uncanny the resemblance between these kids and the Slumdog Millionaire kids was. But unlike the characters in the movie, lady luck is not going to rescue them from poverty, it us who have to give them back their basic rights.
The Haze
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*The Haze*
Through the haze and age-tinted glass window,
as the afternoon breeze flirts with the uncared garden.
A glimpse of the reddish hue stirs,memoir...
10 years ago
4 comments :
it us who have to give them back their basic rights.
One does not 'confer' or give back fundamental human rights! And they were never taken away from the kids in the first place, right? It's circumstantial and those circumstances have to be changed.
There are lots of NGO doing their part, but still those are insufficient. Govt should take initiatives for implementation.
PurelyNarcotic :)
True, basic rights are not conferred, everyone is born with them but on practical terms it would be meaningless in absence of the "others" or society/state. When the state whether actively or passively fails to ensure that an individual is able to exercise her rights, it is as good as snatching it which makes it a "commission" rather than an "omission" ;)
"those circumstances have to be changed."
Absolutely! but how do we go about it?
Innocent Warrior,
The difference between haves and have-nots is so huge in our country that no NGO's, Govts can eliminate them by themselves and neither should we expect them to....
Its people like you and me who have to do our own bit, however,small:)
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