A research at five major checkpoints along the Nepal-India border in western, mid-western and far- western Nepal has shown that more than 70,000 children migrate into India every year from those checkpoints alone.

The report of the research done by Save the Children Alliance in Nepal in collaboration with Centre Child Welfare Board was launched Sunday [13 November] in Kathmandu. The report says that the child migration from Nepal to India appears to be on the rise, which is caused to some degree by the conflict. Twenty-four percent of the respondents in the research directly pointed out conflict as the reason for their migration to India while majority of the migrants also hailed from the districts most affected by the conflict.

The fact that only 9 per cent of the migrating children said that they were going to India for education while the majority said that they were going for work was another disheartening item in the report. Though the Dalit [members of the lowest cast] children comprise only 13 per cent of the children populace, they were about one third of the total migrating children. Out of the migrating children, 87 per cent were boys.

The report also said that, though most of the children were accompanied [by] elders who claim to be their parents or relatives, but many of them could be contractors involved in trafficking of children for labour or other exploitation and not the friends or relatives they claimed to be.

Speaking after launching the report, Shyam Sundar Sharma, joint secretary at the Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare said that the government was worried about the status of children in other countries and was trying to create a conducive environment for children in the country.

Presenting the key points of the report, Deepak Sapkota, executive director of centre child welfare board, said that the research was done at Bhairahawa, Nepalgunj, Tikapur, Dhangadi and Mahendranagar from 3 July to 3 October in 2004. He said that 17,583 children went out of the country during that period. Sapkota said that 8,210 children were recorded to have returned from India from 4 October to 4 December.

Keith Leslie, country director of the Himalayan field office of Save the Children US, and Valter Tinderholt, resident representative of Save the Children Norway, also spoke at the occasion.

Published on: 15 November 2005 | The Rising Nepal