Supporting rag pickers in Indian slums

How informal schools funded by Oxfam are transforming the lives of children working as rag pickers in Indian slums.

Saleha and Sahera. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Saleha (8) and Sahera Khatoon (10) live in Shanti Busti, a rag-picking community in Lucknow, northern India. Incredibly low wages mean that the two sisters, as well as their 13-year-old brother Muslim, must work to support their family.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

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Photo of people scavaging through rubbish at Shanti Busti. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Shanti Busti (literally 'peace slum') is on the margins of Lucknow, and of Indian society. The people here eke out a living from the rubbish dumped by this huge city. They have no political representation, and are denied basic rights and services.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Children who sort through rubbish on the streets of Lucknow. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Sahera and Saleha join other girls sorting through rubbish on the streets of central Lucknow, while Muslim helps his Dad collect rubbish from local offices.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Sahera and Saleha picking through a skip. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

The girls work 12 hours a day, collecting plastic which is then sorted and sold for recycling. The work is hard and the children are exposed to health risks. It's particularly difficult in the heat of the summer, when temperatures can hit 45 degrees centigrade.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Disposable plastic tea-cups retrieved from the street. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Disposable plastic tea-cups are particularly sought after: one kilo fetches 8 rupees (10p). In an average month, Sahera and Saleha contribute roughly half the family income of 3,200 rupees (£42).

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Sahera and Saleha sorting through rubbish on the street. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Their vital contribution, and the added responsibility of looking after their three younger brothers and sisters, means Sahera and Saleha don't have time to attend ordinary school.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Child drawing on the blackboard at an Apna Kendra class. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

So, with your support, Oxfam has opened a special school tailored for these children. It's called Apna Kendra ('Our place'), and it opens in the afternoon when most rag-picking children are not working.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Children attending class at Apna Kendra. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Oxfam has provided a blackboard, a makeshift school building, books, slates, school bags, games, and mats. The children learn to read and write to a basic standard so they can be admitted to regular state schools.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Asha pointing to something in a textbook. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Most importantly, Oxfam pays the wages of teacher Asha Nishad, and arranges her teacher training. "Apna Kendra gives the children of Shanti Busti an opportunity to explore and learn," says Asha. "By teaching the children Hindi I hope that they are able to assert their rights and reduce the exploitation they suffer from others."

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Children playing at school. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

The timetable also stresses the need for play which is often absent from the lives of working children. The girls enjoy school because they get the time to sing and play snakes and ladders and carrom, a traditional Indian board game.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik

 

Sahera and Saleha. [Photo credit: Tom Pietrasik]

Your money makes a real difference to girls like Sahera. The bridging school means they have a better chance of continuing their education, and gives them hope of a life away from collecting plastic on the streets of India.

 

Photo: Tom Pietrasik