I was reading a collection of Ruskin Bond short stories. In one of them, a little girl visiting her grandmother runs across the road from the house to the fields as the unknown beckons her. As I was reading, I wanted to stop her from venturing out into the unfamiliar. I almost had my heart racing and wanted to reach through the pages to physically stop her from coming to any harm. And it was then I realised I was living in Ruskin Bond’s simpler world where the girl simply goes and befriends a boy, who too has nothing in mind beyond pure friendship. I realised that in that world of children’s literature, there were no lurking psychos, no men who could not differentiate between a child and woman and no ‘known’ relatives to take advantage of this innocent girl.
I also realised with a pang that I, who grew up in the beautiful world where Enid Blyton and Amar Chitra Katha were the staples, was now a middle-aged woman who could only imagine the worst. That was what the newspapers and the news channels with their almost daily reports of a rape here and a rape there have reduced me to — a highly -strung woman who is unable to visualise the carefree abandon of childhood. Along with this revelation came deep sadness over the fact that we have taken away the beautiful innocence of childhood and imprisoned our children in the concrete world indoors with television for company.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau, the number of reported crimes against children more than doubled between 2012 and 2014. Nearly 90,000 such crimes were registered in 2014, of which over 37,000 involved kidnap and abduction, and nearly 14,000 involved rape. No wonder, parents are becoming paranoid about the loss of innocence in their children. Even rapes on school premises rock the nation. How then can this nation stop the terrible trend?
Education is the key. We need to educate our nation and its people that children deserve to live, and live well. Our country, despite making great strides in the technological and economic spheres, seems to be still grappling with a skewed sex ratio. I believe that for our girls to be appreciated and treated well we need our leaders to be more empathetic. They should think twice before making outlandish remarks such as, ‘boys will be boys’, or going into semantic hair-splitting on what a ‘gang rape’ is. As a nation we lack role models.
Secondly, we need to revamp our slow-moving judicial system and plug the loopholes by bringing on rapid reforms. Despite the sharp increase in the incidence of crime, the rate of conviction in rape cases involving children in 2014 was an abysmal 31 per cent. Unless there is a rapid change in our judicial system and a quick redress system in place, the perpetrators would have scant fear of the law and will continue their shameful acts without remorse. The government needs to realise the seriousness of the situation and its long-term implications, and incorporate the changes as early as possible.
Understandably, parenting is an onerous job and parents of both girls and boys should ensure that their house is filled with love, respect and compassion for all. Most parents are oscillating between suffocating children with love and later giving in to the pressure of teenage rebellion and providing them with all the freedom without question. Striking a balance between a healthy kind of neglect and ensuring good behaviour at all times is the key. Surrounding the home with good thoughts and deeds would help raise more balanced children.
The same goes for the field of education. Moral values need to be imparted and steps taken to ensure that the wards become better human beings. Concerted efforts by the government, the police, the school authorities and the parents are needed if we want our children and grandchildren to continue to live in the innocent world created by Ruskin Bond, Enid Blyton and their ilk. They deserve this carefree world before the responsibility of adulthood weighs them down.
This was published in The Hindu in 2015.
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12 comments
This article really resonates with me. It’s heartbreaking to think how much childhood innocence has been lost in today’s world. We desperately need a collective effort to create a safer, more compassionate society where kids can enjoy the carefree joys of growing up, just like in the stories we grew up loving.
Innocence in child… is no more prevailing in today’s world. The reason can be nucleus family, both working parents, study pressure, more competition and above all the hi tech technology stealing every bit of child’s innocence.. whom to blame and we cant trust anyone for our child’s best care in our absence? I still dont have the answer … someone help me too as I too want the same childhood as we enjoyed
World is apparently different today. And, for sure as a nation we need to do a lot of reforms. But honestly, world was like this before also. In our childhood days, we heard of childlifters and children would be put into profession of begging. I think today we get to know of these atrocities more. Independent and free spirited boys and girls were there earlier too as they are today. They try to get out of social boundaries. Some succeed and many fall. But there is no disagreement, now that we know what to do, we must work to removing our weakness.
Well said. But when rape victims and terrorists are released from jails and felicitated, then the entire social system needs to wake up. We have lost our innocence, and we don’t seem to realise that this make a whole new society living in the shadow of fear.
Isn’t it sad Chandrika, that what was written in 2015 stills holds true in 2024!
We are living in dangerous times, where people are alienated , families and communities are dying. I was watching SHinchan , its an animation series, and a five year old child could walk home without any fear for their safety. I wish we are able to provide such safe places for our next generations.
It’s no wonder that this piece was published in The Hindu. It is so insightful, so mind-numbing and so thought provoking, that as one reads, one is forced to reflect within themselves and wonder what they’ve done to make things better for the children.
I can deeply relate to the sadness you feel, remembering a time when childhood was free from such dangers. The call for education, empathy, and systemic change resonates strongly. Our children deserve a safer, more nurturing world to grow up in.
The first paragraph says it all. I also would’ve thought of the worst if I read a story where a young girl is venturing out into the dark! Uff, where have we come? And what have we done in this horrible journey! What a thought-provoking article!
I agree and it is a scary world out there! The only thing we can do as parents is to ensure our kids are living in a safe and healthy environment at home.
It really scary to bring up children in this era be it a boy or a girl. When do we get to see a world where we send in kids without any worry. This was a good one though written years ago still holds good
Even after 9 years of publication of your article, sadly nothing has changed. The only difference is, thanks to social media, we now know about more such incidents. Earlier not so many were brought to light and many suffered in silence. Unless the judiciary becomes stromg, there will be no fear and crimes against women cannot be curbed.
You are right, the world has changed, and for the worst. We need strong changes and reforms that can sweep across the nation and really change how people behave and what they accept as being ‘okay’ or normalizing crimes.