JHARKHAND: For years, Nikita Kumari, 21, loitered the abandoned mines of mica — a translucent mineral used in cosmetics and automobiles — to dig out scraps in Jharkhand. These scraps, known as ‘dhibra’, sell for anything between Rs 3 and Rs 15 a kg. For families that mine together, more hands means more money, and parents often take their children along. Nikita is from Dhab village at Koderma. When she was hardly eight years old, she was told to financially support her family — parents and four siblings. She was rescued by Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) activist. They enrolled her in a school and she is now leading a movement against child labour and child marriage.
In the final year of her bachelor’s degree, she aspires to become a police officer so that she can work for children. “Education can truly change lives. It is the most potent weapon in the fight against child labour,” she says. “I have spent a few years working in mica mines. The financial situation of my family was not good. I never imagined I would get a chance to study,” says Nikita.
One day, she met volunteers of Children Foundation who came to her village and persuaded her parents to send her to school. After joining a school, she was regular member of Bal Panchayat and actively participated in the activities related to creating awareness about child labour and child marriage.
Nikita is working in four villages – Basaria, Behradih, Bantok and Simaria, adjacent to her village Dhab to spread awareness about education and against child marriage. She has connected 30 children with education after rescuing them. After becoming an activist, she has rescued 40 child labourers and got them enrolled in schools.
One of such children has just passed her class 10 exam. “Before joining the school, I worked along with my father in digging out mica. Nikita Didi rescued me after talking to my parents. Once I started going to school, there was no looking back,” said Rubi Kumari of Simaria village.
Spokesperson for Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation Rakesh Senger said Nikita never gave up. “When she got a chance to continue her education, she started proving herself. A bright student, she has actively participated in the activities of Bal Mitra Gram. We are proud that she is now in final year of graduation and aspires to be a police officer,” says Senger. The village named Ghatwari Tola became Bal Mitra Gram in the year 2012 and Nikita got associated with it, he added.
The thriving mica industry in Jharkhand has put thousands of children at risk of exploitation. Acute poverty has led children to drop out of school and work in illegal mines. Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation has been working since 2005 in 501 villages where children are working in mica mines.