Child Helpline 1098 in Vidarbha: Uneven Access, Slow Response, and On-Ground Realities

thenewsdirt
May 28
6 min read

The helpline number 1098 is meant to be a lifeline for children in danger, distress, or difficult situations.

It connects callers to social workers, police, health services, and rehabilitation options. In urban areas with mature support systems, it can handle hundreds of cases every year. In regions like Vidarbha, where awareness remains uneven and infrastructure is limited, the outcomes are more complex.

Childline 1098 functions as a nationwide toll-free helpline, operated through NGO partners and supported by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

In places like Nagpur, Gadchiroli, and Yavatmal, the system varies significantly in reach and functionality. While Nagpur benefits from an established network and trained personnel, districts such as Gadchiroli and Yavatmal face difficulties due to geography, administrative limitations, and social barriers.

Differences in Reporting and Access

Nagpur is one of the earliest cities where Childline 1098 was introduced, with services running for more than two decades.

The helpline is managed by the Matru Sewa Sangh Institute of Social Work and supported by multiple partner organisations.

The infrastructure allows them to handle around 900 calls annually, responding to cases ranging from child labour and abuse to emotional support and educational assistance. Regular outreach and intervention activities, including work with children on the street, have been integrated with the helpline’s services.

In contrast, districts like Gadchiroli only began operating a dedicated 1098 unit in 2019. In its first complete year of operation, the helpline there received just 148 calls.

These included calls related to government scheme linkages, street-living children, emotional support, and protection from child marriage and abuse.

Just one call in the entire year was about child sexual abuse.

This number does not reflect the scale of risk children face in tribal and rural parts of the district. The low reporting rate highlights the gap between potential need and actual outreach.

In Yavatmal, Childline services exist, but public information on performance and call data is limited. NGOs in the region report continued incidents of child marriage and unsafe migration for labour.

Stakeholders say that many families prefer to reach out to local Anganwadi workers or police stations rather than dialling 1098, either due to mistrust or lack of clarity on what help the helpline offers.

Challenges in Rural and Tribal Areas

The key issues affecting the performance of the Childline service in Vidarbha’s rural areas include limited mobile network access, few trained personnel, and a lack of supporting infrastructure.

Shelters for children in distress are mostly located in Nagpur. This means that in districts like Gadchiroli or Yavatmal, even when children are rescued, they must often be transferred long distances for shelter or rehabilitation. Transport delays and communication issues add complexity to these efforts.

There is also a significant lack of awareness about the complete child protection ecosystem. While 88 per cent of surveyed villages in Gadchiroli were aware of 1098, only about 10 per cent understood the role of other critical institutions like the Child Welfare Committee or the District Child Protection Unit. Without knowledge of the full system, many calls do not lead to sustained outcomes.

In some cases, families bring children back into harmful environments shortly after a rescue, due to a lack of alternatives.

Administrative reviews point to more systemic issues. Childline centres in parts of the country have struggled with funding delays and staffing shortages.

As of 2023, the central government announced that the helpline will be integrated into the 112 emergency response system.

This move is intended to address delays in response time and improve coordination with police and ambulances. However, it also raises concerns among NGOs that have been running the service, particularly regarding the shift in operational control.

Views from the Ground

Local officials and NGO representatives offer a mixed assessment. District officials in Nagpur say that 1098 has helped establish a structured way to address child protection issues.

The Matru Sewa team highlights numerous cases in which children were rescued from exploitation and integrated into formal schooling.

Partner organisations, including ICID and Yuva Jyoti, support activities like skill-building, health kit distribution, and self-defence workshops for girls.

In Gadchiroli, organisations like Ami Amchya Arogyasathi and Leher have been working to improve grassroots outreach.

Awareness campaigns such as “Childline Se Dosti” and the formation of Village Child Protection Committees have helped initiate conversations about children’s rights and the role of 1098.

Yet even these efforts admit limits. Many families are still hesitant to involve external actors in domestic issues. Children who migrate for labour or are subject to early marriage often remain outside the system until intervention by chance or unrelated actors.

In Yavatmal, field workers observe that front-line health workers and teachers sometimes act as informal points of contact for cases that should go to the helpline.

The lack of formal referral systems and the uneven presence of trained social workers mean that responses to distress are inconsistent.

In severe cases, the helpline is used, but follow-through is hindered by administrative delays or lack of rehabilitation capacity.

While stakeholders agree that the presence of the helpline has created an avenue for reporting and support, they also note the urgent need for more training, coordination, and public awareness. Community surveys reveal that while the number is familiar, its function remains unclear to many.

Social workers say that they often have to explain not just how to call the number but why a particular issue should be reported in the first place.

Implementation and Follow-up

The standard process for responding to a 1098 call involves immediate outreach by a social worker, coordination with law enforcement if required, and temporary shelter for the child. In many cases, Childline centres also link children and families to government schemes or educational support.

In urban areas like Nagpur, this process is backed by a web of NGOs, medical services, and legal aid networks.

In districts like Gadchiroli, the steps are the same in theory, but much harder to execute. A single Childline team may be responsible for covering multiple talukas, travelling long distances to reach remote hamlets.

Transport support, legal coordination, and shelter placement remain challenges. Mobile network issues mean that even when a child does call, the connection may drop before details can be taken. Childline teams say that they attempt to follow up on all such incomplete calls, but admit that many remain unresolved.

The resolution rate of cases is not publicly available for most districts. Nationally, Childline India Foundation reports that around 90 million calls have been handled since the service began.

District-level statistics are harder to access. What is known from district reports is that most calls are not related to emergencies but to economic distress.

For example, of the 148 calls in Gadchiroli in 2021–22, only a few were for direct abuse or crime. The rest were for scheme benefits, emotional support, or school dropouts. This indicates a broader need to integrate child protection with other forms of social assistance.

Community members often describe the helpline as useful, especially when other doors are closed. Children have referred to it as a safe way to get help without leaving their homes. Parents say they feel more confident calling when they know someone will respond within a few hours.

However, in more isolated pockets of Vidarbha, the knowledge and confidence required to make that call are still lacking.

The state government continues to encourage the use of 1098. Awareness drives are conducted regularly, with school programmes, posters, and audio announcements. However, social workers argue that this is not enough. They point to the need for building a culture where reporting harm to children is not seen as interference, but as protection. The experience of districts like Nagpur shows that this is possible, but it requires sustained effort, training, and investment.