KP Sinha, Director, state Social Welfare Department, said: “Shelter homes cater to the children belonging to extremely marginalised sections. But the fund allocated by the Central government is not enough to run them. Even homes under the Child Welfare Committee and the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) are in a dismal state.” Sinha was speaking at a discussion on child protection rights organised by CINI Asha in the city on Monday.

“Provisions for vocational training are not market-driven, thus, they need to be changed. The government wants the NGOs to focus on the hygiene of children staying in these homes. We have seen an unprecedented number of children falling prey to diseases like scabbies,” Sinha added.

According to the official, to improve living conditions in these shelter homes, Rs 1,800 are required per month for each child. But the break-up of the fund allocation reveals that the state provides only Rs 450 per month, while the Centre's contribution is just Rs 225 per month. The contribution of NGOs in case of state cottage homes is also only 10 per cent of the total fund.

Sandhya Bajaj of the National Commission for Protection of Child’s Rights said that apart from poor infrastructure in Juvenile Justice Board homes, the police have proved ineffective in handling cases of child rights' violation.