There are over 6 lakh people living in over 800 designated slums in Bangalore. But, over 1 million people live in non-designated slums in abject poverty with no safe drinking water or even adequate sanitation.
Our children at Parikrma come from somewhere between this ambiguous terminology and statistics. Children come from 99 slum communities and 4 Orphanages from different communities across Koramangala, Jayanagar, Sahakaranagar and Nandini Layout, with diverse histories. There are common stories of neglect, complete lack of medical care, alcoholic parents and various sorts of abuse. Perhaps, what is most alarming, is that sometimes our children don’t even get a meal a day.
However, one thing is for certain: if not for Parikrma, many of our children would not be in school.