Childhood Enhancement through Training and Action (CHETNA) annual reports

Childhood Enhancement through Training and Action (CHETNA), founded under Public Charitable Trust Registration Act, envisions achieving a child-caring society that respects their rights. Since its establishment in 2002, CHETNA has been engaged in rehabilitation and empowerment of Street and Working Children in Delhi and around, attempting to break the vicious cycle of their poverty and ensure easy access to the basic rights of protection, education, healthcare, participation and opportunities for a livelihood. We have successfully been able to design and implement innovative models, like, Contact Point-based Alternative Education, Peer to Peer Harm Reduction for substance using children, Street Children Federation, Badthe Kadam, Street to School, etc. with proven outcomes. We work for all kinds of street children, regardless of gender, origin or religion, inspired by an underlying ethic of compassion for their vulnerability and extreme marginalization. Considering the nature of their vulnerability and challenges of working with this section of the population, we build deep partnerships with nonprofits, businesses, governments and local administrations, based on a shared vision of prosperity for street and working children. Working with our partners—ranging from socially responsible corporations, NGOs, governments—we are committed to ensure street children their long due rights and improve their quality of life. We attempt to bring change by pioneering innovative models and committed partnership. In developing innovative models and programmes, we actively involve children, and by doing so, we are successful in harnessing their ingenious creativity and skills. Participation of children has been of central significance in our entire activities: we involve them both in designing a model as well as their implementation on the ground. All these have led CHETNA to evolve as a truly child-centred organization. We work with street children in all their forms: working children, out-of-school children, begging children, child labour in factories, children connected with railway stations, children n difficult situations, children using substances, runaway children, etc. Our approach covers their needs from education, health and livelihood to rescuing and repatriation. Time to time CHETNA also provides consultancy to various government ministries and child rights commissions. In our work, children act as protagonists and staffs and the catalysts for change.