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Quick Facts
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There are very few people in this world, who are selfless and work hard to bring a smile on innocent faces. We live in a world where child exploitation has become a common phenomenon. We find that people exploit children and make them work in factories. There are some inhumane people, who rape children. It is devastating to know that a small 5-year-old girl child gets raped every other day in our country. What do we do? We cannot do anything about it! We would sit back, watch the news on television and tell our daughters not to step out after 8 pm in the night! Do we stand up and fight for the rights of the children, who are not able to complete their education or are getting raped by strange men walking on the streets? NO!
Kailash Satyarthi is the man, who has pledged that he would fight for the rights of these children, who are not safe in this country. According to him, they are not safe anywhere! He is a Nobel Prize winner and he works for the children! In the ruthless world, he has stood up and wishes to bring a change.
Kailash Satyarthi is an activist, who fights for the rights of children. It has been more than three decades that Satyarthi has been struggling to protect the children from slavery and other disgraceful acts of society.
Let us take a quick look at his journey and the famous quotes by him!
Early Life
Kailash Satyarthi was born as Kailash Sharma in the year 1954 on 11th January. Why did he change his surname? When he was teenager, some incident happened where the higher caste did not treat the lower caste as equals and even misbehaved with them. He gave up his, ‘Sharma’ title and started to affix, ‘Satyarthi’.
Satyarthi literally means, ‘the seeker of truth’. Yes! Kailash ji is a seeker of truth and he has left a deep impact in every child’s life. We do not see such selfless people in our society, who give up their dreams to fulfil the dreams of a child!
He was just 11 years old when he started collecting books with his friends and distributed it to the children, who had a desire to learn. When Satyarthi was in school, he met a boy outside, who was sitting with the cobbler. The cobbler was the little boy’s father. Satyarthi questioned the cobbler, ‘Why isn’t your son studying?’ The cobbler said, ‘Some people are born to work!” This is a heartbreaking statement and Satyarthi decided that he wants to dedicate his life to improve the life of children.
Struggle to Free Children from Torture and Slavery
Do you know that Kailash has freed over 83,000 children from slavery and torture? Yes, it is the biggest achievement for a human being. We may earn a crore in an year but the feeling of freeing a child from torture is like coming in contact with God. The sad truth of our society is that there are not enough jobs and the population is increasing day by day. The poor families send their children to beg, steal, and even work in factories. It is dangerous for a child to work in a factory!
Kailash Satyarthi has spent more than three decades to free children from labour and slavery. The 83,000 children that he rescued are from 144 different countries!
Satyarthi had done engineering but he gave up his dream of becoming an engineer and spent rest of his life to bring a smile on a child’s face. Yes, he became an activist, who works for child rights!
He founded the Bachpan Bachao Andolan in the year 1980. He also established, Rugmark, which is now known as, GoodWeave International. Satyarthi formed the Global Campaign for Education. He is also the president of the organization. The organization promotes child education on an international level.
In the year 2015, the Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation was established. The aim was to create a child-friendly world.
Awards Received by the Child Right Activist
Kailash Satyarthi has received the following recognized awards –
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- Nobel Peace Prize (2014)
- P.C Chandra Puraskaar (2017)
- The Trumpeter Award (US) (1995)
- Wallenberg Medal (2002)
- Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award (1995)
- Defenders of Democracy Award (2009) US
- Dainik Prayukti – Personality of the Decade (2018)
The list goes on! For a great man like Satyarthi ji, no number of awards can be enough!
Famous Quotes by Kailash Satyarthi
“Child slavery is a crime against humanity. Humanity itself is at stake here. A lot of work still remains but I will see the end of child labour in my lifetime!”
“Childhood means simplicity. Look at the world through a child’s eyes. It is beautiful!”
There is no doubt that Kailash Satyarthi loves children and he goes the extra mile to free them from slavery!
Childhood is the age of innocence. In a child’s mind, there is no anger, jealousy or hatred. There is just enough room for love in a child’s heart.
“I never go to temples but when I see a child, I see god in them.”
Kailash Satyarthi sees God in a child. This shows that he believes in what he does! He strongly believes in the cause that he is fighting for!
“India may be a land of 100 problems but it is also a place for billion solutions.”
Absolutely! There are innumerable problems in India but if we make a resolution and take the necessary steps, any problem could be solved. It just requires a little determination!
“Let us unite the world through the compassion of our children.”
“Each time I free a child, I feel it is something closer to God.”
According to Satyarthi, he gets closer to God when he frees or helps a child. It is indeed a great feeling to help a child, who needs to be rescued.
Our country has very few rare gems like Mr. Satyarthi. We are proud that he belongs to our country! Kailash Satyarthi ji has done so much for the innocent children of the world that he gets millions of blessings each day. Did you know that he is a true family man and loves to cook? May he always find success and happiness in his life.
Written By: Anshu Choudhary
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