Children - Terre des Hommes

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Rajabandha also has a low cost hostel for ST students. It is a
residential facility but there are very few students enrolled here.
Table 2.36 gives enrolment in low cost hostel in Rajabandha
2009-10.
Table 2.36: Enrolment in the low cost hostel,
Rajabandha 2009-10
Class Total strength ST
Boy Girl Boy Girl
I 5 4 5 4
II 4 3 4 3
III 2 4 2 4
IV 5 7 5 7
V 4 2 4 2
Total 20 20 20 20
Source: Rajabandha primary school, Keonjhar
Anganwadis in the Area
Most of the anganwadis are poorly functioning and some of
them are only mini-anganwadis. In Sarlapentha village, there
are 59 children enrolled in the anganwadi centre, although only
a small number attend regularly. Some of the infants are taken
to the mine sites by their mothers as the anganwadi centre is
closed for most part of the day. The anganwadi helper stated
that atleast 30 children here are malnourished. A sample of
the status of children’s enrolment and nutrition can be seen in
Janardhanpura anganwadi centre in Table 2.37 and Table 2.38.
Table 2.39 gives the age group and total number of children in
the Janardhanpur anganwadi.
Table 2.37: Enrollment in the anganwadi centre
2009-10, Janardhanpur
Category of Total children Boy Girl
the children
Table 2.38: Nutritional status of children in
Janardahnpur anganwadi 2009-10
Grade
Grade I 31
Grade II 3–5
Grade III 10–12
Grade IV 02
Source: Anganwadi centre, Janardhanpur
Total children
Table 2.39: Age group of the children in
Janardhanpur anganwadi 2009-10
Age group
0–6 month 7
6 month–3 years 24
3–6 year 19
Source: Anganwadi centre, Janardhanpur
Total no. of children
The reasons for this skewed status of children in the area,
whether there is mining or no mining, is because of the feudal
nature of the economic situation where most of the families are
landless agricultural or mining labour while a small minority
is in control of the majority land.
Impacts of Mining on the
Environment and Implications on
Health of the Community and
Children
It was very evident that there was serious air and water
pollution in the entire belt of Joda and Barbil. Environmental
degradation is perceptible through the reduced forest cover as
forests have been cut down, both legally and illegally, for the
purpose of mining. In a day, atleast 60,000 trucks run through
ST 48 25 23
SC 2 0 2
General 0 0 0
Source: Anganwadi centre, Janardhanpur
Iron ore being loaded in Badakalamati area, Keonjhar
(Photo July 2009)