My Word With The World: I am Ravi

Dhaba Boy I am Ravi. I am ten years old and I like playing crikate with my friends and Dhoni is my hero. I am from a village in Jharkhand. I come from a family of three brothers and three sisters, always drunken father and beaten mother. Even though our father beats our mother everyday, she cooks special food only for him, while we children starve everyday. Because our father spends most of his earnings in drinking mahua or smoking ganja and gambling. Apart from working all day at home my mother works as a maid in a few houses and it was because of her that we children were getting our morsel of food at least two times in a day regularly, until she died. Ma was the only creature in this world who was ever loving towards me. I cried for many weeks after her death. Even now whenever I remember her, my eyes become filled with tears. After her death our life became very miserable. Because she was the only one who was making sure that we got some proper food everyday. After she passed away, my babuji sent my two didis to work in houses as maids. And I had very less time to play with my sisters. After my mother’s demise they were the ones who cared for all of us.

I like going to school and I love reciting my favourite rhyme ‘Machili jal ki rani hey, jeevan uska pani hey’ (Fish is the queen of waters and water is its life). I also like playing with my friend Deepu (who was known as pada at school, as he was very strong). He never cries when our masterji beats him and he fakes tears every time he is beaten, as masterji continues to beat him until he cries or his own hands ache. Every evening after school we both chupke se pluck guava from Sharmaji’s garden. Once we were caught by him and we were thrashed and he beat us more not for stealing, but for entering his garden and touching his trees. And he called us names ‘Garib achuth kutha’ (Poor untouchable dog) and said that because we touched the trees they became ill-fated. Sharmaji’s son also was of our age and studied in the same school, but I never understood why the trees and fruits did not become ill-fated when he touched.

One fateful day a person came to meet my father. On seeing him, my father was very happy and borrowed a chair from the neighbour’s house to seat him and asked me to go and buy tanda for him. He was introduced to us as Papu chacha. My father and he had a long talk which lasted for more than two hours and ended in Papu chacha giving a huge bundle of rupee notes to my father. Never before we had seen so much money at our house. And after a while my father called me and told me to pack my things in a jola and told me that I was to go with Papu chacha to town. I did not ask my father any questions, as I knew that it will only attract his anger which will end up in beatings. As I was keeping my things in the bag I looked at the sad faces of my brothers and sisters and the thought that I am going to be separated from them brought tears to my eyes. Within a short while I was in the jeep with Papu chacha, waving my hands to my siblings and neighbourhood friends, not knowing that it was the last time I was seeing them. I wanted to stay awake all through the journey to remember the way back home, but my continuous crying left no strength in me and very soon I feel asleep. Darkness covered the sky and so my life, as I was entering into an unknown and uncertain destiny.

“Sir ji, I think the Mestri is calling me and I need to go, and thanks for the twenty rupees that you gave me, it is equal to my two days wage.” As if doing some mental calculation Ravi continued, “that makes seventy rupees” and looking at me, “I am accumulating money to go home”. And with a broad smile, he started to run. And at the top of my voice I shouted, “Ravi, I will come tomorrow night to meet you.” Only then did I realize that it was half past one and Ravi was called to serve customers at the dhaba, even at this hour.

I am traveling from Varanasi to Dehri-On-Sone and on the way I stopped at this dhaba to have tea and that is how I met Ravi.

(More on Ravi and such children is to come in the future).

From the news: (source - http://www.globalmarch.org/news/101007.php)

On 10 October last year, the government notified all child domestic labourers, children in roadside dhabas, eateries, restaurants, and child labour in the entertainment sector illegal under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986. This is the extension of the restrictions on the employment of child domestics to everyone from only government employees within the service rule in 1999. This service rule is a direct result of Bachpan Bachao Andolan's (Save the Childhood Movement), a NGO working for the rights of the child, effort to highlight the case of first child domestic slave rescued in India in 1996.

The responses of the states are appalling. In Madhya Pradesh only 94 children have been identified while in Jharkhand only 6 children were identified as working in these sectors of these 4 children were found to be over 14 years of age. In the capital Delhi, 55 child labourers working in homes and dhabas while NGOs estimate that there are more than 2 lakh child domestics and child labourers working in dhabas, eateries, etc.

What can I do?

Even as we celebrate this day as Children’s Day let us take a decisive step to help such children:

1. Learn about the laws on Child Labour and with the help of legally supported NGOs free such children

2. Support the livelihood and education of such children in your locality, if not, through some NGO that works among them

mahua – an intoxicating drink

ganja – opium

Ma – mother

babuji – father

didi – elder sister

chupke se – quietly

tanda – cold drink

chacha – uncle