Despite the government's claims to establish shelter homes and consultation centres in Karachi to rehabilitate homeless children, the concerned departments could not take measures in this connection, NGO activists told newsmen on Sunday.
Provincial Commission for Child Welfare (PCCW) is working under the supervision of Social Welfare Department and Commission for Child Welfare but consultation centres for children have yet to be built, NGOs activists allegedly said.
"I do not like to live more in this apathetic condition," said 14-year old Tufail staying at Pakistan Chowk while talking to newsmen.
"I want to spend normal life but how can it be possible," he asked.
Kamran, the other child said, "everybody comes to us frequently and gives us a solace but how can be turned their sayings true."
A big crowd of such isolated children is surviving in middle class neighbourhood of Pakistan Chowk.
NGOs working for welfare of these street children believe that around 15,000 children are living in different areas of the city of 13 million. About 50 percent of such children are living in Saddar Town neighbourhood only.
The Executive Director Azad Foundation Arifa Zainab, said her organisation has launched mobile dispensaries in four towns to provide medical facilities to these neglected children including Gulberg Town, Jamshed Town, Saddar Town. Besides, the NGO runs OPD sessions twice a week at Pakistan Chowk and Abdullah Shah Ghazi for the purpose.
She said these children have found ordinary shelters at footpaths and isolated places but they are living in horrible situation and are not safe there.
Azad Foundation has planned to initiate rehabilitation centre soon where from these children could be able to get free food, education and facility of psychological counselling at day time daily, Arifa Zainab declared.
The issue of street children gained publicity in 1999 when Javed Iqbal killed more than 100 children in Lahore in a grotesque manner. The President Initiator Human Development Foundation, Rana Asif Habib, said around 75 percent these children have become addicted of 'Glue sniffing' popularly known as Samad Bond.
'Rana said we are going to initiate cloth bank project widely in different city areas and in the first step we will distribute 100 cloth pairs among 100 children in a ceremony being held on Ramazan 18', she said.
Mujeebur Rehman, a volunteer of the Initiator Foundation said hospitals do not accept these children due to their miserable condition and demand letters of Medico Legal Officer for getting them admitted for treatment. In this condition it is quite difficult for volunteers to provide quick health facility to these children.
Mujeebur Rehman, originally from Bangladesh is interested to help Bangali children wandering in different areas in misfortune conditions. He has now joined the Initiator Foundation for the purpose.
The Chief Co-ordinator of the Initiator, Ghulam Husain Khar, said, we are working to launch community counselling centres in different areas and initially we have introduced such centre in Manzoor Colony. He claimed to achieve target to open 500 Street Children Awareness Schools in Karachi till the 2007.
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