India Day 10

I have now been in India for 2 weeks, and I have experienced so much here already.  Our team has been working in a school the last couple of days, and it’s been wonderful to be around the children but it’s also heartbreaking to see the conditions they are living in.  India has more children in the world than any other country they have around 375 million(5), and of those children 20 million are not in school(4), they either can’t afford it, or their health doesn’t allow them.  Many times they have to work for their families, and they normally work long hours and for a very small amount of money, there is around 44 million child laborers in India total(5).  They are put in dangerous working conditions and many cannot also attend school.

A couple of weeks ago we visited the slums in India which was one of the most shocking things I have experienced so far.  The conditions these people live in are terrible, there is a horrible smell and many times there is trash and human waste lining the dirt roads where people walk.  It is so sad that for these people it’s gotten this bad, they are trapped in this vicious cycle and have no way of getting out.  There are children running around everywhere many without any parents.  Death and disease is a regular occurrence for these people.  Because of their poor drainage system and lack of clean water supply within the slums it is perfect breeding ground for disease such as urban malaria, tuberculosis, pneumonia, leprosy, and intestinal worm and these are just a few of them(6).

When I first arrived in India I was not prepared for what I would experience.  I could not imagine that the poverty, and sickness that I would see and experience.   I want to do something to help these people but I don’t know what to do.  In the past few years India has been making steps to help this problem of poverty, and because of the growing economy there is hope for the future, and the people of India.

photo: Lucian Marin

(4)World Press. (2009). Statistics on Poverty in India. Retrieved http://filipspagnoli.wordpress.com/stats-on-human-rights/statistics-on-poverty/statistics-on-poverty-in-india/
(5)Children around the world. (1999). Indian children in poverty. Retrieved from http://homeport.tcs.tulane.edu/~rouxbee/kids99/india2.html
(6) Express India. (2010). Filthy slums, colonies openly invite diseases. Retrieved from http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/filthy-slums-colonies-openly-invite-diseases/337129/