Can you ponder on our fate?

Qudsia Kadri

 

The forlorn look, the besieging eyes, the painful burden of workload. Can you look at us and see any ray of hope, any light at the end of the tunnel for us? Is this where we belong in the dump yards of the city collecting and hunting for any remains of food, any remains of re-saleable items. Even animals don't have to go through the disgrace of scavenging for their meals.
Do you see any laughter in our eyes, on our lips, any joy on our faces -- is there no one to hear our cries?
The pictures depict the sorry state of children belonging to the lower strata of our society. They are a common sight all over the city. These innocent young boys and girls who have to help and contribute for the family's meagre income which also is non-existent in most cases. These barely seven or eight year old's are the true picture of hard work, patience and courage. They are the children of this country the children who are to be acknowledged, the children who dig their finger's in grime and dirt, the children who yearn to have access to an education, to clean drinking water, to a bowl of food perhaps just once a day, these are the children who roam our streets, who sometimes run away with a piece of fruit or a piece of bread from the vendor's stall, because the pangs of hunger cannot be endured any more.
These are children who are beaten and thrown around by the pot-belly masters. These are children who have no homes, who sleep hurdled together in a room and most times under the open sky. These are children who when thrown out of workshops and factories for no good reason, join the already growing business of beggars.
But does it matter to the person zooming by in his polished brand new car, does it matter to the government and administrators of this nation. Of course not, we all have bigger issues to talk about, to write about, to worry about.
These children are not ours, they are not our problem. Our children go to schools, have homes to live in, have food to eat (and throw away), have time to sleep and play.
Why do we have to care?
The good work being done by the kind warm hearted thoughtful philanthropists and organisations in this country of the pure is not enough. The social sector development programmes have to be implemented, money has to be utilised in projects of development, allocation of funds under the public sector development programme is more of an irony than anything else.
Quoting figures is pointless -- high time that the results are seen, and the benefits are reflected in the various segments of our society.
Let us all contribute in our own ways to help the children, the families of sorrow laugh like the rest of us.
Let the helping hands reach out to a maximum number of homes and families. Let us embrace these children and help them discover and recognise their worth, because the Creator of all the children is the same, it is only circumstances, lack of facilities and help from the state and a strong forceful implementation of social sector reforms which have to be enforced and carried out, and it is only then that the disparity and gap between these children and our children can be bridged.