Child protection; Arjun’s story
Arjun had a tragic start to his life; his father passed away when he was a young boy and things only got worse from thereon. He was kidnapped by a gang when he was just 5 years old.
They threatened the scared young boy and forced him to work as a beggar for them. He would roam the streets begging for loose change and hand over his daily earnings every day. Arjun lived this nightmare for about 5 years.
When he was 10 years old, the police managed to rescue him from the gang, but the damage had already been done; his spirit was broken and he only remembered the hard life of the streets. Arjun was given refuge in a local shelter where he started the long journey of his recovery. After some time, he was able to recall that he had originally lived in Jaipur with his family. He was then transferred to a shelter in Jaipur run by British Asian Trust’s partner TAABAR, a shelter home for children where survivors are taken in, cared for, and rehabilitated with families. Working closely with Arjun, they identified the urgent need for counselling and started one-on-one sessions with him.
Arjun started thriving in a secure environment; he enjoyed studying and got along well with the other children at the shelter. Meanwhile, working with local authorities, TAABAR traced his family and contacted his brother. Thanks to the counselling he had been receiving, Arjun had started remembering his life before the kidnapping and was able to positively identify his brother. Sadly, his mother had passed away in his absence during the years of his kidnapping, leaving Arjun another blow to process.
Arjun was reunited with his family and left the shelter happily to live with them. He is currently studying in class 9 and enjoying being a child again. The team still intermittently checks in with him to ensure his safety and progress.
The British Asian Trust’s Anti-trafficking Programme protect children from human trafficking, forced labour and sexual exploitation. We do so by working with governments, civil society, police, judiciary, and businesses. Our partners include Jan Sahas, Childline India Foundation, SSEVS, TAABAR and others. Our work is supported with funding from the John Lewis Foundation, Mukul Madhav Foundation, Serum Institute and others.
Names have been changed.
Arjun not included in photograph.