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With over one third of the population of India below the age of 18 years of age, India is known to have the world’s largest population of children. Sadly, however, the country faces numerous socio-economic problems, creating a huge amount of disparity in the country. Although there are a number of socio-economic evils existing in the society, poverty lies at the core of all the issues. Imposing an oppressive weight on India, poverty is a dominant problem in both rural as well as urban India. India, itself has recorded the world’s highest concentration of poor people in the world. These socio-economic problems include all the social as well as economic realities and experiences that shape an individual’s personality, lifestyle and attitude. They are the problems which mainly focus on the relationship between economics and social behavior. From religious intolerance, naxalism, caste related violence, overpopulation, illiteracy, corruption, child labor and white collar crime. Children from underprivileged families (or those who live below the poverty line) are the most vulnerable of all sections of society to face the burden of these problems and their rights are completely ignored in such a marginalized society. With various related problems associated with children such as nutrition, health, education, social security of children, action on children’s rights; most of the underprivileged children in the country have a voice which no one can hear; nor anyone bothers to. As the entire family struggles to earn money, parents are not able to give the required love affection and attention that their children deserve. The chief aim is survival and children are most often viewed as helping hands to earn money. They are most often forced into employment by their parents and made to work for long, toiling hours where they often go for hours without water or food. The Constitution of India as well as the United Nations (The UNICEF -The United Nations Children's Fund) has guaranteed certain fundamental rights to every child in the country. The UNICEF is an agency of the United Nations which is responsible for the programs to help aid education as well as health of children as well as mothers in the developing countries of the world. Many of the problems that are faced by children include exploitation, incidence of violence, neglect of the child, commercial sexual exploitation and violence. These rights of a child are the minimum entitlements as well as freedoms that are guaranteed to every person below the age of 18 years, irrespective of their caste, creed, color, race, gender, religion, birth status, wealth as well as origins. These include; the right to survival, right to protection, right to participation and right to development. However, sadly due to the economic divide in the society and the widespread of poverty in the country, these fundamental rights are denied. Child protection is a core belief that is held to keep children safe from any risk as well as perceived risk to their lives or childhood. It refers to ensuring that every child is ensured a security net to depend on, which also has the responsibility to provide them with adequate and necessary care as well as rehabilitation.
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