“I hope to become a doctor in the future.”
With seven siblings and his two parents at home, 10-year-old Arun’s life in Delhi, India is rarely quiet. His family migrated to the city a few years ago from the rural northern state of Bihar in search of better work opportunities. In the bustling capital, his parents both found informal work as ragpickers, earning between 300 and 450 rupees (£3-£4.50) per day.
The community where Arun lives with his family is surrounded by rubbish and there is very little infrastructure to support the people living there. The majority of people work on the rubbish dump as ragpickers so this lack of income, coupled with the poor services, make the cold winters harsh and the rainy season extremely challenging for children and families living there.
Fortunately, Arun met CHETNA, Toybox’s partner in India, and started attending their community education clubs where he was supported to enroll in a local school. In addition to this, through CHETNA’s support, Arun was able to prepare for winter for the first time ever with the gift of warm, clean clothes to help him through the colder months.
Arun shared, “I live in a home that’s made of tarpaulin and in the extremely harsh cold, it is difficult to keep ourselves warm. The only option we have left is to arrange a bonfire with the materials we can find in our surroundings. That in itself is not a permanent solution to handle the cold waves – we also don’t always have enough materials to arrange the fires. In the winter, children in the community often fall sick, suffering from illnesses like fevers, colds, the flu…
When I knew winter was coming, I knew I had to gather clothing for winter, look for firewood and manage my food. It was always extremely cold and I tried to wrap myself in blankets the whole time.
Now though, I feel very happy that I have my new clothes – they have really helped me to keep myself warm. I am very comfortable and all the cold has gone away.
If I were a local leader, I would distribute sweaters, socks, gloves, warm trousers, underlayers, shoes, caps and food – and I’d make concrete houses that stay warm, as well as arranging fire for everyone.”