COVID-19 surge: nearly 10,000 children in country need immediate care and protection, SC informed

Bal Swaraj said they included children aged between zero and 17 orphaned or abandoned during the pandemic since March 2020.

Bal Swaraj, an online tracking portal of a national child rights body, shows details of nearly 10,000 children in the country in immediate need of care and protection. They include children aged between zero and 17 orphaned or abandoned during the COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) informed the Supreme Court that these children ran a high risk of being pushed into trafficking and flesh trade. The Commission said it had already received several complaints of government authorities illegally transferring details of children to private entities and NGOs. A Bench of Justices L. Nageswara Rao and Aniruddha Bose is suo motu examining ways to protect children who have suffered personal losses and trauma caused by the pandemic.