Children’s parade against poverty

from The Hindustan Times

Monica Sood

Young India demands to be heard and seen. And this was evident when the National Stadium resounded with cries of “9 is mine,” as 6,000 children demanded their right to proper education and health.

Schoolchildren, not just from Delhi, but from across the country, gathered at the National Stadium on Tuesday to highlight the poverty and plight of children of a ‘less visible’ India.

Dressed in colourful traditional attire, the children participated in the ‘Public Parade Against Poverty’— a unique '9-is-mine' campaign urging the government to allocate nine per cent of the Gross Domestic Product to education and health.

Supported by the Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (Keep Your Promise Campaign)’ — a national coalition of over 900 grassroots organisations across 15 states, the parade saw the culmination of the target of collecting 1,00001 signatures from school-going and out-of-school kids under the age of 18. It will be submitted to PM Manmohan Singh.