Crimes against children has increased by 52.5 percent from 2012 to 2013, says the 2015 report - Forgotten Voices: The world of urban children in India, by PWC India and Save the Children. This is an alarming statsitic indeed.
The disease burden and crimes against children increasing can both be attributed to the massive increase in urbanisation. All over India, a rising youth populace and the massive migration to towns and cities for better employment opportunities also means that children are in a bigger danger due to basic neglect. Moving to urban areas also means that in most cases both parents are out working, sometimes even in erratic shifts at odd hours, depending on the industry. Unless grandparents are brought down to live with them, an added expense, most young children are left at creches or with nannies. They are exposed to a multitude of people through the day, from garbage collectors to labourers and that they are relatively unprotected is a known fact to everyone around. The older children face their own issues, like peer pressure, substance abuse, exposure of their private life on social media. Crimes against these children will rise.
Urbanisation has its advantages, most of which are great for a country like India that is in transition mode. We are moving from a predominately rural country to one whose urban spaces are expanding in every direction. The monetary benefits of working in urban areas is a massive pull. But with the increase in standard of living comes the increase in the cost of living coupled with extended working hours, all leading to high stress levels. The number of emotional and mental problems suffered by parents often leads to broken homes or marriages that are tested. The children bear these scars and that doesn't bode well for their future. Drug abuse, sexual experimentation at a young age and other bad effects are detrimental to the well-being of the youth in India.
Technology and the advent of smart cities are good for India. They will catapult the country into a select group of nations. But, even with the massive economic pull that a country with a young populace has, the increase in crime has to be viewed at as a stumbling block to India's progress. This is where ministries like Home Affairs and Women and Child Development have to put infrastructure in place to tackle these issues. Take a cue from countries like Australia and Canada, which have been stressing on the protection of its children, India has to put mechanisms in place to ensure that her children have a good and safe future. If that doesn't happen, everything, from rapid urbanisation to the potential of a growing young population, will mean nothing.
