Appeal to constitute children committees with area sabha in local bodies

Two civil society organisations have appealed to the Tamil Nadu government to constitute committees of children along with the area sabhas, which are to be formed in urban local bodies as per a recent notification issued by the government.

In separate statements, Arunodhaya Centre for Street and Working Children (ACSWC) and Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities (IRCDUC) have highlighted that the Tamil Nadu State Policy for Children envisaged the formation of such “bala sabhas (committees of children)” in village panchayats.

Vanessa Peter, founder, IRCDUC, said the government cannot ignore the urban local bodies as nearly 50 % of the children lived in urban areas. The Child Friendly Cities Initiative has articulated that a child-friendly city, in practice, is one “in which the voices, needs, priorities and rights of children are an integral part of public policies, programmes and decisions.”