Samajika Parivarthana Janandolana (SPJ), a collective of various organisations working for child rights, has urged political parties to ensure that issues pertaining to children are given due importance in their manifestoes.
Speaking at a press conference here on Tuesday, M. Narayanswamy, State convenor, SPJ said: “There is an urgent need to address issues of children such as malnutrition, implementation of the Right of Children For Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009.”
Mr. Narayanswamy said a large number of children in the State were malnourished. “There are lots of gaps in the identification of the malnourished children, gaps in providing milk and egg due to delayed payments by the State to the anganwadi workers. The task force and the monitoring committee set up at the district and the state level are eyewash with no civil society representatives in the monitoring committee,” he added.
ADVERTISEMENT
Y. Mariswamy, State organiser, SPJ, said, “All policies are not supporting children’s welfare. There is a need to ensure that each child is given basic education. But ironically, government schools are being shut.”