GiveLife, a Chennai-based NGO, held a national seminar on the ‘Education of Internal Migrant Children’ in association with CREDAI at Park View Hotel, Chennai, on Saturday. The seminar which focused on the children of migrant construction workers assumed significance due to the current issues affecting migrant labourers from the north-eastern parts of India.
In the keynote address Dr Bernard D’Sami, head, National Forum of Migrant Workers Rights, called upon the construction industry to adopt protocols on the rights of migrant labourers. He highlighted the exploitation chain of multilevel land brokers who traffic migrants seeking livelihood due to extreme poverty or distress.
Akhila Srinivasan, managing trustee, GiveLife, told the success story of GiveLife and how within a short span of time it has managed to educate around 20,000 poor children. GiveLife currently supports around 8,000 children. She also narrated the success story of a transit school for children of migrant construction workers in Pursawalkam, Chennai.
Fr Jegath Gaspar Raj, co-founder of GiveLife, underlined the link between modern development and migration. Alluding to the flight of the migrant workers from the north-east he said that migration is a fundamental right and xenophobia is not only a crime but a sin as well. He called upon CREDAI to establish transit schools at all work sites and develop and adopt standard protocols for children of their migrant workers which was welcomed by the chief guest of the seminar Sandeep Mehta, president of CREDAI, Chennai.
Delivering the presidential address Dr Samir Kumar Das, vice chancellor of North Bengal University, explained the contours of migration reality in India today from a geographical and occupational perspective.
While Dr Ram B Bhagat from the International Institute of Population Studies highlighted the gender dimensions in migration Dr Laxman from Madras Institute of Development Studies brought out the processes of globalisation inducing migration.
NGO representatives, teachers, students, activists and independent social researchers participated in the seminar.