Corporate Citizen Claps For The ‘Superwoman In A Saree’ - Kanta Murti Kallar, The Mumbaikar Who Re-Instilled Faith In The Face Of Her Own Misfortune

Kanta Murti Kallar

The 50-year-old flower seller and a pavement dweller exemplified her sense of ‘greater good’, even as the ensuing torrential rains on August 4th, washed away her shanty and all her savings of around Rs.10,000. Unfazed for her own safety, Kanta, with the help of a passing motorcyclist decided to force open a gutter (manhole cover) to clear out the clogging flood waters on the Tulsi Pipe Road in Matunga West an area of high traffic density. Her timely act prevented further flooding which was already submerged in three ft. water at the time she decided to step in. Using a piece of cloth as the only tool, she tied it to the manhole cover and from a short distance, pulled it open, allowing all the flood water to flow directly into the sewerage lines underneath. She did not stop at that and took the onus of standing drenched for another seven hours near the manhole, directing incoming traffic to avoid the possibility of any further tragedy. A mother of eight children, Kanta is the only bread winner as she also fends for her husband who is paralysed. While five of her children are married, she supports the education of the three younger ones by selling flowers on the roadside. The money lost was the fee reserved for online classes for her daughters studying in Class 8 and 10th. Social media proved a blessing in disguise for Kanta when a neighbour uploaded her heroic act, which has since gone viral - an act lauded by netizens, the police, and the passerby. Many Samaritans nationwide have come forward and she has received donations to the tune of Rs.1.5 lakh, including the larger chunk of Rs.1 lakh from Ameya Hete, Founder of Valuable Edutainment Pvt Ltd, for her daughter’s education and another Rs.10,000 to compensate for her immediate monetary loses. Hailing all Samaritans who never cease to surprise!

Corporate Citizen Slaps The Growing Disparities Faced By Children In Disadvantaged Households As They Gradually Get Forced Out Of Schooling Systems, Battle Violence At Homes And Succumb To The Labour Market In The Face Of The Covid Crisis

Current uncertainties have aggravated underlying societal issues making children increasingly vulnerable. Hundred and four of the total 136 countries reported a disruption in services related to violence against children, as per UNICEF’s Socio-Economic Impact Survey of COVID-19 Response. “Ongoing school closures and movement restrictions have left some children stuck at home with increasingly stressed abusers. The subsequent impact on protection services and social workers means children have nowhere to turn for help,” said Henrietta Fore, Executive Director, UNICEF. CHILDLINE alone intervened in 10,000 cases, receiving 4.6 lakh calls in 21 days from March 20 to April 10, 2020, with 30% requesting protection against abuse and exploitation. Despite civil society groups rescuing more children and issuing warnings, children have also been replacing the migrant labour shortages. Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA), rescued 591 children from forced work and bonded labour nationwide during the lockdown. Underprivileged children, forced out of schools due to the pandemic have found their paths into farms and factories, further worsening the existing global child labour issues. Ramya Subrahmanian, chief of research on child rights and protection at UNICEF Innocenti, Italy, highlights on this lost generation of children in an economy that is predicted to face lower productivity and earning potential, unrealised tax revenue, increased poverty levels and pressure on the government for more handouts. “An even bigger issue will be for those children who are due to enter school during this time. If these children face delays in entering school, there may be an increase in the numbers of never-enrolled children, which could, in turn, push up child labour numbers,” she said. NGOs anticipate that the real spike in child labour will accelerate with the uptake in economic activity.