New Delhi: The Supreme Court Thursday said the states have to protect children, who have either lost one or both parents during the COVID-19 pandemic, and ensure that their education is not disrupted at least in the current academic session.
The apex court said that identification of such children is the starting point to find out their needs and their welfare is of paramount consideration.
Even if there are 1,000 children without their parent, just imagine what is going to happen to them. They can be pushed to child labour. They can be landing themselves to hands of undesirable elements in the society. We don't know what will happen to them. These are vulnerable children. So, we have to be extremely careful about these children, a bench of justices L Nageswara Rao and Aniruddha Bose said.
The bench said most of these children may not have the means to fend for themselves.
So, it is the state which has to protect them, said the bench, which was hearing a suo motu matter on contagion of COVID-19 in children protection homes.
The top court took note of state-wise details of children, who have become orphans or lost one parent during the pandemic period, and also the status of their identification process so that benefits meant for them could be extended.
The bench said states have to take pro-active steps in taking care of these children and also ensure that their education is not disrupted due to the loss of either one or both parents.
It said the states may talk to the private schools, where such children are studying, so that there could be waiver of fee and their education continues at least for this academic session.
The bench observed that if the schools are not coming forward or willing to waive off the fee, the states can bear the fee of such children for this academic year at this stage.
The court said it is necessary that benefits announced by the state governments should reach the needy children.
It said the district magistrates should take steps to continue uploading the requisite information on the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) Bal Swaraj' portal as delay in this process will be detrimental to the interest of the distressed child.
NCPCR has told the Supreme Court that over one lakh children are in need of care and protection as they are either orphaned, lost one of their parents or are abandoned during the COVID-19 pandemic from April last year.
In an additional affidavit filed in the apex court, the NCPCR has given details of the number of children who have lost either their mother or father or both between April 1, 2020 to August 23 this year based on the information uploaded on its Bal Swaraj' portal by the states and Union Territories.
It said as per the information uploaded on the portal up to August 23, there are total 1,01,032 children who are in need of care and protection.
As per the data, there are 8,161 children who have become orphans, 92,475 have lost either of their parents and 396 have been abandoned.
The affidavit, filed by advocate Swarupama Chaturvedi, said out of the total 1,01,032 children -- 52,532 are boys, 48,495 are girls and five are transgender.
It said out of these total children, 10,980 are in the age group of 0-3 years while 16,182 are in age group of 16 to up to 18 years.
The affidavit was filed in the apex court which is hearing a suo motu matter on contagion of COVID-19 in children protection homes.
Giving state-wise details based on the information uploaded on the portal, the affidavit said in Maharashtra, there are total 15,401 such children out of whom 470 are orphans, 14,925 have lost one parents and six have been abandoned.