Heritage bookstore in College St set to open new outlet
Dasgupta, the well-known heritage bookstore in the city, is going to open its outlet in south Kolkata on 1 May.
In Murshidabad, a third of the total girls in the age group of 15-19 are married off early, said Samir Chaudhuri, the founder and secretary of an NGO today. The NGO has identified Bamuha village in the district as ‘mature prevention site’ wherein there are maximum cases of child abuse and village Gopalgunj as its ‘early prevention site’ wherein there are minimum such cases.
The children in our society have rights to protect them but these rights are poorly exercised, Mr Chaudhuri said adding that early marriages, child labour, child trafficking, school drop outs and other more serious violations of child rights have been seen in the state. The NGO works to strengthen the existing government- sponsored programs through community engagement process.
The NGO took up an endeavour wherein parents were made to understand how to give their child nutrition and make a holistic space for its development. They wanted the children to participate at these discussions and then these children also formed ‘child-friendly communities ‘to check up on peers.
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They work with parents in order to make them aware of the child rights so that they can also hold the government officials accountable for their work. It was observed that that children especially girls were involved in rolling beedis (cigarettes). Children as young as ten years old and also from the age group of 10-14 and 15-17 constitutes the major work force at around 62 per cent.
The number has significantly dipped following the NGO’s move. Child marriages and school dropouts have also reduced after this approach, he added.
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