Street children and marginalised persons in urban areas require particular attention and special provisions are needed to protect them, Women and Child Development (WCD) minister Krishna Tirath said today.
"In urban areas, the most marginalised and destitute deserve particular attention.
"Children surviving on the streets and experiencing violence and insecurity in urban settings require specific provisions from a wide range of stakeholders," Tirath said while delivering the keynote address at the inauguration of the Second High-Level Meeting (HLM) on South-South Cooperation for Child Rights in the Asia-Pacific.
About 200 delegates, including 21 ministers from 33 countries, are participating at the meet.
The Beijing Declaration of 2010, adopted at the first High -Level Meeting, had laid down a number of commitments for the realisation of child rights, Tirath pointed out, adding that the purpose of the second meeting was to assess the progress made since then towards securing the rights of children.
She said that the deliberations over the next two days would focus on three key areas - early childhood, development, and adolescents and urbanisation.
She said that a new National Policy for Children has been adopted in India, which is based on, among others, the principles of right to life, survival and development and non- discrimination.
Anthony Lake, Executive Director, UNICEF, said that as the Asia-Pacific region continues its economic rise, many children face challenges. Allowing disparities to linger would involve a very high economic and social cost, he warned.
Among others present on the occasion were, WCD Secretary Nita Chowdhary, Additional Secretary in MEA, Sujata Mehta, Su Fengie from the office of the Working Committee on Women and Children, China delegates from UNICEF and international organisations such as ADB and SAARC.
