This book presents the outcomes of a field action project at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). Project Chunauti (English translation: Project Challenge) focused on a group of intellectually disabled, orphan children who were survivors of abuse, exploitation and neglect, and describes their journey toward empowerment. It offers a vision and a reproducible, adaptable model for rehabilitation that can foster the social re-integration of intellectually disabled orphans at institutions. As the implementation of laws is especially important for vulnerable groups, the book also outlines a socio-legal approach that not only impacts the children directly, but can also bring about policy level reforms. Project Chunauti was born out of the need to explore options for these children and to set standards for their care, protection, rehabilitation and social re-integration. The core objectives of the project were to provide support and services, including counseling, education, life skills and vocational skills training, as well as medical and psychiatric support to help them overcome the trauma of abuse and exploitation. Its further goal was to train the staff of state-run homes and state authorities, helping them prepare and implement care plans and rehabilitation, combat child sexual abuse and malnutrition, employ positive disciplining, and better understand disabilities. The book also draws on the Project team's experiences of rolling out the replication process in Maharashtra. This book highlights the role of the courts, media and other stakeholders in the journey towards empowerment and justice. It is a combination of social-work methods, application and implementation of law and legal advocacy, as well as best practices for protecting children's rights and developing rehabilitation and re-integration projects for intellectually disabled, orphaned children in India. The interventions detailed here provide a reproducible, adaptable model of intervention for children in institutional care across the country.

This book discusses legal services clinics and various other access-to-justice initiatives that are established to protect and represent the rights and interests of children and youth in several countries across the globe. These could include legal services or access-to-justice clinics run by government or universities or community. The book has contributions from academicians, lawyers, researchers and legal professionals from several counties including India, UK, USA, Brazil, Australia, Indonesia, Poland, and Spain, which discuss how they represent children and youth in their countries. The book looks at how these access-to-justice initiatives currently provide assistance, what are the child friendly justice procedures they use, and best practices that can be replicable in other jurisdictions. The chapters contain findings of field research studies, some case studies, and models related to these topics. There are recommendations on ways to strengthen access-to-justice and legal services for empowering children and youth. The main goal is to create a resource for readers who want to expand child advocacy opportunities in their own universities and communities. The reader may also learn how to conduct legislative advocacy and case law advocacy to improve laws in other jurisdictions; and take-away best and replicable initiatives. The practices could be adaptable by other clinics and countries. The book will be useful to child rights advocates and defenders, students of law, legal researchers, civil society organizations, legal services authorities, legal aid institutions, educational institutions, school authorities, juvenile justice authorities, clinical legal educators, justice educators, justice practitioners and law and policy makers.

This book presents the outcomes of a field action project at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). Project Chunauti (English translation: Project Challenge) focused on a group of intellectually disabled, orphan children who were survivors of abuse, exploitation and neglect, and describes their journey toward empowerment. It offers a vision and a reproducible, adaptable model for rehabilitation that can foster the social re-integration of intellectually disabled orphans at institutions. As the implementation of laws is especially important for vulnerable groups, the book also outlines a socio-legal approach that not only impacts the children directly, but can also bring about policy level reforms. Project Chunauti was born out of the need to explore options for these children and to set standards for their care, protection, rehabilitation and social re-integration. The core objectives of the project were to provide support and services, including counseling, education, life skills and vocational skills training, as well as medical and psychiatric support to help them overcome the trauma of abuse and exploitation. Its further goal was to train the staff of state-run homes and state authorities, helping them prepare and implement care plans and rehabilitation, combat child sexual abuse and malnutrition, employ positive disciplining, and better understand disabilities. The book also draws on the Project team's experiences of rolling out the replication process in Maharashtra. This book highlights the role of the courts, media and other stakeholders in the journey towards empowerment and justice. It is a combination of social-work methods, application and implementation of law and legal advocacy, as well as best practices for protecting children's rights and developing rehabilitation and re-integration projects for intellectually disabled, orphaned children in India. The interventions detailed here provide a reproducible, adaptable model of intervention for children in institutional care across the country.

Key developments have taken place, both nationally and internationally, relating to child rights. A marked change in traditional thinking about child rights was promoted by the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989. 20 November 2014 marked 25 years of the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the emergence of a different perspective on providing justice to children. This, the fully revised third edition of Child Rights in India: Law, Policy, and Practice, highlights the key developments that have taken place to promote and protect the rights of children. Since the publication of the last edition in 2005, there have been several legislations, progressive court judgments, and policy initiatives in India and other countries on the rights-based approach. This edition covers the new developments in India like the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, the new CARA guidelines, shared custody or joint parenting, international trends relating to joint custody, missing children, out-of-school children, the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, Child Nutrition, and the National Food Security Act, 2013, and so on. Each chapter is structured to include: national laws, leading case law, major policies and schemes of the government, international law, interventions and strategies by non-governmental organizations to protect and promote child rights, gaps in implementation of laws and policies, and recommendations for legislative reform in support of children.