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A brief note on PACT
Promise to Act for Children Today
India is home to some of the richest
people in the continent, but also home to millions living below
the poverty line. The hardest hit are the homeless, the abandoned,
the poor, the ill, the abused, the lonely… neglected by an
apathetic government and a preoccupied society. And within this
fragile section live life's most unprepared victims: children
in distress.
PACT (Promise to Act for Children Today) is a
charitable society established for the welfare and upliftment of children in India,
without distinction as to race, colour or religion.
Hamara Club, meaning
"Our Club" is a service agency established by
the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to address
the needs of street children in the metropolitan city of Mumbai.
Since its inception, the Project workers have reached out to more
than 500 children who are provided with services such as healthcare,
nutrition, formal and non-formal education, vocational training,
counseling, recreation, outings, residential camps and assistance
for saving their earnings in banks/ post offices. In each of these
contact centres, locker facilities are provided for the children
to keep their belongings.
Since the general health condition
of children is very poor, preventive and curative health services
are regularly provided. AIDS Awareness Programmes are organised
for this "high risk" group of children, who lack protection
and adult supervision. As victims of the sub-culture of the street,
involving drug-abuse, smoking, gambling, drinking, vagrancy and
prostitution, these children are given emotional support and assistance
to tackle these problems.
Aasara, a project
for street children, was started in 1993 in Thane with the aim
of reaching out to vulnerable children. Its aim is to give street
children a meaning in life by providing basic amenities, building
their confidence and self- respect and helping them to become
self-reliant. Today, Aasara has contact centres at Kalyan, two
balwadis at Thane, (Kalwa Creek) and Kalva (Manisha Nagar) and
a shelter unit at Digha, Navi Mumbai. Presently, there are over
350 children on its roll.
The governing body and members
of PACT believe that:
Many of the things we need or want can wait.
The child cannot.
Right now is the time his bones are formed and his senses are being developed.
To him we cannot answer 'Tomorrow'.
His name is "TODAY"
For more information and
details on PACT, the Hamara Club and Aasara projects, please contact
Caroline Juneja, PACT Director :
- phone : (91) 22 6410625 (in India)
- e-mail : pact@indiasite.com
If you are interested in supporting
the organisation and send donations (from another country than
India), please contact Mr Lalou ("Comite de Soutien
au Projet PACT", loi 1901) :
- phone : (33) 1 60726878 (in France)
- e-mail : laloupa@club-internet.fr |
