From Vulnerability to Voice: Child Rights and Protection in India

By reading this article you can solve the below UPSC Mains Model Question

While India has achieved a 'tipping point' in the judicial disposal of child sexual abuse cases, the challenges of digital exploitation and the rigid implementation of the POCSO Act in consensual adolescent relationships persist. Critically examine the efficacy of the current institutional and legal framework in ensuring holistic child protection in India. (GS 1 Society)

Context:

The Supreme Court, in a judgment on Friday, observed that child trafcking and commercial sexual exploitation of children by organised cartels is a “deeply disturbing reality” in India which continues to #ourish despite protective laws

Current Status

The MoSPI report released in late 2025 highlights a mix of significant progress and emerging health concerns:

• Demographics: The National Birth Rate has declined to 18.4 per 1,000 (Rural: 20.3; Urban: 14.9).
• Mortality:
  • Infant Mortality Rate (IMR): Dropped from 44 (2011) to 25 (2023).
  • Under-Five Mortality Rate (U5MR): Improved to 29 (2023).
• Education: Secondary school dropout rates saw a sharp decline from 13.8% (2022-23) to 8.2% (2024-25).
• Gender Parity: India achieved a Gender Parity Index (GPI) of 1.0 or higher across all education stages.
• New Health Risk: Over one-third of children (5–9 years) now show high triglyceride levels, indicating a rising risk of lifestyle diseases like diabetes.

Constitutional Provisions of Child Rights:

The Indian Constitution treats children as a “vulnerable group” requiring protective discrimination and positive entitlements.

1. Foundational Principles: Part III (Fundamental Rights)

• Article 14 (Equality before Law): Recognizes children as a special class requiring specific legal protection.
• Article 15(3) (Protective Discrimination): This is the enabling provision that allows the State to make “special provisions” for women and children. It serves as the constitutional basis for laws like the POCSO Act and the Juvenile Justice Act.
• Article 21 (Right to Life and Dignity): The Supreme Court (SC) has expanded this to include the right to health, nutrition, and a safe environment. In recent 2025 rulings (e.g., Re: Right to Privacy of Adolescents), the SC emphasized that a child’s dignity must be protected even in the digital and reproductive spheres.
• Article 21A (Right to Education): Inserted via the 86th Amendment Act (2002), it mandates free and compulsory education for all children aged 6 to 14 years.
• Article 23 (Prohibition of Trafficking): Protects children from human trafficking and begar (forced labor).
• Article 24 (Prohibition of Child Labor): Explicitly prohibits the employment of children below 14 years in any factory, mine, or hazardous occupation.

2. Guiding Principles: Part IV (Directive Principles of State Policy)

• Article 39(e): Directs the State to ensure that the “tender age of children” is not abused and they are not forced by economic necessity to enter vocations unsuited to their age or strength.
• Article 39(f): Mandates the State to provide children with opportunities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity. It also demands protection against moral and material abandonment.
• Article 45: Directs the State to provide Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) for all children until they complete 6 years (this bridges the gap before the Article 21A age group).
• Article 47: Enjoins the State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living, which is the bedrock for schemes like Poshan 2.0.

3. Fundamental Duties: Part IV-A

• Article 51A(k): It is the duty of every parent or guardian to provide opportunities for education to their child/ward between the age of 6 and 14 years.

4. Institutional & Decentralized Governance

• Articles 243G and 243W: These empower Panchayats and Municipalities to implement schemes for child development (found in the 11th and 12th Schedules).

Current Issues and Challenges

1. Health and Nutritional Challenges

Despite falling mortality rates, children face a “triple burden” of malnutrition and emerging lifestyle risks.

• Emerging Lifestyle Risks: As per the 2025 MoSPI report, over one-third of children (5–9 years) now have high triglyceride levels. This indicates a shift from acute hunger to obesity and early-onset metabolic disorders like diabetes.
• The Persistence of Wasting and Stunting: India ranks 102nd out of 123 countries in the 2025 Global Hunger Index. Our child wasting rate (18.7%) is the second highest globally, signifying acute undernutrition that the Poshan 2.0 scheme is still struggling to bridge.
• Neonatal Vulnerability: 48% of newborn deaths are still linked to prematurity and low birth weight, highlighting the need for better prenatal care for mothers.

2. Safety and Justice

• Medical Negligence and Safety Gaps: A significant headline in The Hindu (Dec 20, 2025) highlighted systemic gaps where children with chronic conditions (like Thalassemia) were exposed to infections like HIV due to contaminated blood transfusions. This points to a lack of stringent NAT (Nucleic Acid Testing) audits in blood banks.
• Adulterated Medicines: In late 2025, the Supreme Court heard pleas regarding the death of 22 children due to contaminated cough syrups (containing Diethylene Glycol). This exposes a major challenge in drug regulation and “Schedule M” compliance.
• Trafficking Cartels: The Supreme Court recently (Dec 19, 2025) described child trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation as a “deeply disturbing reality” that continues to flourish despite laws like the JJ Act.

3. Educational Challenges and the Digital Divide

• The Learning Gap: While enrollment is high, the “Learning Poverty Index” suggests that roughly 70% of 10-year-olds in India struggle to read a basic text post-pandemic.
• Digital Exclusion: The 2025 Budget analysis shows a stark divide: only 24.6% of females in rural areas have internet access compared to 72.5% of males in urban areas. This “double disadvantage” (gender + geography) prevents rural children from accessing digital resources like Swayam or DIKSHA.
• Secondary Dropout Rates: Although declining to 8.2% (2025), dropouts remain high among marginalized communities (SC/ST) due to economic pressure to enter the workforce.

Root Causes of Child Issues:

1. Structural and Institutional Issues

• Judicial Backlog & Low Conviction: Despite India reaching a “tipping point” in 2025 where POCSO case disposals (87,754) exceeded new filings (80,320), a massive backlog of 2.62 lakh cases remains. Nearly half have been pending for over two years, leading to witness fatigue and low conviction rates.
• Informalization of Care: The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) is the backbone of child welfare, but workers (Anganwadi) are often treated as “informal caregivers” with wages below minimum standards. This lack of professionalization hampers the quality of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).
• Policy Gaps in “Family Enterprises”: The 2016 Child Labour Amendment allows children to work in family businesses after school. While intended to preserve traditional arts, it often acts as a loophole for hidden child labor in the unorganized sector.

2. Socio-Economic Root Causes

• The “South Asian Enigma”: This refers to the paradox where India’s economy grows (5th largest globally), but child malnutrition remains high.
  • Wasting & Stunting: India still has the highest child wasting rate (18.7%) globally.
  • Caste & Geography: Statistics show underweight rates are 56% among Scheduled Tribes compared to the national average, highlighting that issues are often driven by Social Exclusion.
• Gender Inequality: Girls from low-income backgrounds face a “double burden.” While India achieved Gender Parity in education in 2024-25, girls remain at higher risk of dropping out at the secondary level due to “unpaid care work” at home and early marriage pressures.

3. Emerging 2025 Challenges

• The “Triple Burden” of Nutrition: A new trend in the MoSPI 2025 Report shows that while undernutrition persists, one-third of children (5-9 years) now have high triglycerides. This is caused by the rising consumption of high-calorie, low-nutrient ultra-processed foods.
• Climate Displacement: India ranks 26th in the Children’s Climate Risk Index. Extreme weather events (floods/heatwaves) cause school closures and “climate-induced migration,” which makes children easy targets for trafficking networks.
• Digital Threats: There has been a 94% rise in sexual crimes against children (2017–2022). With the rapid expansion of AI and social media, “Cyber-grooming” and AI-generated abuse material have emerged as a primary safety challenge that current laws (POCSO 2012) are still adapting to.

Measures to Tackle Child Issues:

a) Government Schemes:

1. Nutrition and Health: The Foundation

• Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0: * Objective: To address the “Triple Burden” of malnutrition (Stunting, Wasting, and Anemia).
  • Key Feature: Integrates the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), POSHAN Abhiyaan, and Scheme for Adolescent Girls.
  • 2025 Context: In response to the high triglyceride levels noted in the MoSPI 2025 report, the government is now pivoting towards “Nutri-Halls” in Anganwadis to provide millet-based diets.
• PM POSHAN (Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman):
  • Objective: Provides one hot cooked meal in Government and Government-aided schools.
  • Scope: Covers Balvatika (children below 6) and primary/upper-primary students.
  • Latest Data: Recent social audits in 2025 emphasized the inclusion of eggs/fortified foods to combat the 67% prevalence of anemia among children.
• Mission Indradhanush 5.0:
  • Objective: To achieve 100% immunization of children against 12 vaccine-preventable diseases.
  • Success: Helped India reduce the Under-Five Mortality Rate (U5MR) to 29 per 1,000 live births (as per Dec 2025 data).

2. Protection and Welfare: Mission Vatsalya

• Mission Vatsalya:
  • Objective: A “road-map” for child protection and child welfare services.
  • Institutional Shift: It supports Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) and Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs).
  • 2025 Update: The “Vatsalya Digital Portal” was scaled up this year to track “Children in Street Situations” (CiSS) in real-time using Aadhaar-linked data.
• PM CARES for Children:
  • Context: Launched for children who lost both parents to COVID-19.
  • Status: In 2025, the first batch of these children received their corpus of ₹10 lakh upon turning 18, alongside health insurance under Ayushman Bharat.

3. Education and Digital Empowerment

• Samagra Shiksha 2.0:
  • Objective: An overarching program for the school education sector extending from pre-school to class 12.
  • Feature: Focuses on “NIPUN Bharat” (National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy) to ensure every child achieves foundational literacy by Grade 3.
• PM-SHRI Schools (PM Schools for Rising India):
  • Feature: Development of 14,500+ schools as “Green Schools” with modern labs and ICT.
  • Goal: To showcase the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
• DIKSHA (Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing):
  • Relevance: Addressing the Digital Divide, It provides QR-coded textbooks and “Tele-Education” to rural areas.

4. The Girl Child: Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP)

• BBBP 2.0:
  • Shift: The scheme has expanded to include non-traditional livelihood (NTL) options for girls.
  • Success: Contributed to the Gender Parity Index (GPI) reaching 1.0 at all levels of schooling in 2025.
• Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY):
  • Feature: A small deposit scheme for the girl child with high-interest rates and tax benefits.
  • Status: Cumulative accounts surpassed 3.5 crores in 2025, promoting financial inclusion for minors

b) Legislative Measures:

1. Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015

• Key Provision: Introduced a distinction between “petty,” “serious,” and “heinous” crimes. It allows juveniles (16–18 years) to be tried as adults for heinous offences (crimes with a minimum punishment of 7 years).

2. POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences), 2012

• Key Provision: Places the burden of proof on the accused (rebuttable presumption of guilt) and mandates child-friendly court procedures (e.g., no face-to-face contact with the accused).
• POCSO Amendment Act, 2019:
  • Death Penalty: Introduced capital punishment for “aggravated penetrative sexual assault” (e.g., on children below 12 years).
  • Child Pornography: Criminalized the storage and possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
  • Fast-Tracked Justice: Mandated that trials must be completed within one year.

3. Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016.

• Total Ban: Prohibits the employment of children below 14 years in all occupations.
• Adolescents: Introduced a new category—Adolescents (14–18 years)—prohibited from working in “hazardous occupations” (e.g., mines, inflammable substances).
• Controversial Exception: Allows children to help in “family enterprises” after school hours or during vacations, provided the work is non-hazardous. Critics argue this often serves as a loophole for hidden child labor.

4. Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009

• Legal Mandate: Implements Article 21A, ensuring free and compulsory education for ages 6–14.
• Section 12(1)(c): Mandates 25% reservation in private unaided schools for children from Economically Weaker Sections (EWS).
• Recent Change (2019): Abolished the “No Detention Policy” to improve learning outcomes, allowing states to conduct exams in Class 5 and 8.

5. Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021

• Goal: Seeks to increase the minimum age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 years, bringing it on par with men.
• Objective: To reduce Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR), improve nutrition levels of infants, and ensure women complete their higher education.

c) Institutional Measures:

1. National Statutory Bodies

• National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR):
  • Role: A statutory body (under the CPCR Act, 2005) that ensures all laws and policies align with child rights.
  • 2025 Initiative: Launched the “Addiction-Free Amrit Kaal” campaign and established “Prahari Clubs” in schools to involve children in raising awareness against substance abuse.
  • Powers: It has the powers of a Civil Court to summon individuals and requisition public records during investigations into child rights violations.
• Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA):
  • Role: The nodal agency for adoption in India and the designated “Central Authority” under the Hague Convention.
  • 2024-25 Reform: Implementation of the Model Foster Care Guidelines 2024, which aim to shift the focus from long-term institutionalization to family-based foster care.

2. District-Level Mechanisms (Mission Vatsalya Framework)

The district is the functional unit for child protection under the Mission Vatsalya scheme.

• Child Welfare Committee (CWC):
  • Composition: A bench of five members (at least one woman) in every district.
  • Function: Deals with “Children in Need of Care and Protection” (CNCP). It acts as a Quasi-Judicial body with powers equivalent to a Metropolitan Magistrate.
• Juvenile Justice Board (JJB):
  • Composition: A Judicial Magistrate and two social workers.
  • Function: Decides on cases of “Children in Conflict with the Law” (CICL).
  • Latest Trend (Dec 2025): The Supreme Court’s Juvenile Justice Committee recently (Oct 2025) emphasized “Diversion Programs”—rehabilitating offenders through community service and counseling rather than detention in special homes.
• District Child Protection Unit (DCPU):
  • Role: The implementation arm at the district level that coordinates between the CWC, JJB, and police. It is responsible for maintaining the “Individual Care Plan” for every child in state care.

3. Specialized Units and Judicial Measures

• Special Juvenile Police Units (SJPU): Established in every district and city, headed by a police officer not below the rank of DSP, to handle cases involving children with sensitivity.
• Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs): As of January 2025, 754 Fast Track Courts (including 404 exclusive POCSO Courts) are functional, having disposed of over 3.06 lakh cases to reduce the judicial backlog.
• Childline (1098): Now integrated with the national emergency number 112, this is a 24/7 emergency outreach service.

International Best Practices:

• Iceland’s Youth Model: Focuses on curbing substance abuse through state-funded extracurricular activities (sports/arts) to keep children engaged.
• Norway’s Barnevernet: A highly specialized (though sometimes controversial) social service system that intervenes early in cases of parental neglect.
• Brazil’s Bolsa Família: A conditional cash transfer program that successfully reduced child labor by linking payments to school attendance and vaccinations.

Emerging Best Practice: Digital Safety (EU & Indonesia)

• EU’s “Age-Appropriate Design Code”: Platforms must prioritize children’s safety by default (e.g., turning off location tracking and “nudge” features for minors).
• Indonesia’s 2024-25 Regulation: Mandates that any digital product accessible to children must have Privacy by Design, putting the child’s interest above commercial profit.

Way Forward:

1. Nutritional Shift: From “Calorie” to “Content”

• Address the New Health Crisis: With 33% of children (5-9 years) showing high triglycerides, the government must shift from cereal-heavy meals to Nutrient-Dense Diets.
• Millet Integration: Scale up the use of “Shree Anna” (millets) in PM-POSHAN to combat the double burden of obesity and anemia.
• Medical Safety Protocols: In light of recent medical tragedies, mandate Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) and strict Blood Bank Audits to protect children with chronic conditions like Thalassemia from iatrogenic infections.

2. Digital Floor as a Social Guarantee

• Universal Digital Access: To bridge the rural-urban divide (where only 1 in 4 rural girls has internet), “Internet Access” should be treated as a necessary adjunct to the Right to Education (Art 21A).
• Cyber-Safety by Design: Adopt international best practices like the EU’s “Age-Appropriate Design Code” to protect children from data breaches and AI-generated exploitation.

3. Climate-Resilient Child Protection

• Heat-Proofing Schools: With children facing 8x more heatwaves than previous generations, school infrastructure must be retrofitted with Cool Roofs and decentralized water systems.
• Disaster-Sensitive JJ Systems: Develop a protocol for the immediate protection of children orphaned or displaced by climate-induced disasters (floods/cyclones).

4. Strengthening Institutional Accountability

• Filling Statutory Vacancies: State Governments must ensure 100% occupancy in SCPCRs and District Child Protection Units (DCPUs).
• Data Integration: Launch a National Unified Child Portal that merges police data (missing children), health data (immunization/nutrition), and school data (dropout tracking) for real-time intervention.

5. Legal and Judicial Reforms

• Decriminalizing Consensual Adolescence: As suggested by recent SC observations, the POCSO Act needs nuanced implementation to distinguish between “heinous predators” and “consensual adolescent relationships” to avoid unnecessary traumatization.
• Fast-Tracking Trials: Ensure that the goal of completing POCSO trials within one year is met through the recruitment of dedicated child psychologists and special public prosecutors.

Conclusion

As the MoSPI 2025 Report suggests, India is at a demographic crossroads. We have successfully reduced mortality, but the challenge now is to ensure “Quality of Life.” A child-centric development model—one that is climate-resilient, digitally inclusive, and nutritionally sound—is not just a moral imperative but a prerequisite for India to achieve its Viksit Bharat @ 2047 goals.