1. Child Centered Provisions for Air
and Soil Free from
Contamination
Ms. Medhavi Sharma
Young Professional
Planning Commission (GoI)
medhavi.sharma@gov.in
1

2. 2
1. BACKGROUND

3. Most severe threat to
children often comes from
the safest environment: their
homes
At household level two most
common threats to children:
cigarette smoke (SHS
exposure)and household
solid fuel use
Closer proximity to ground
makes children susceptible
to adverse effects of soil
contamination
Open defecation in urban
slums: a major cause for soil
contamination
Air and Soil
Quality as EHI
3

4. 4
Source: http://www-wds.worldbank.org/
http://www.unicef.org/socialpolicy/files/Sustainable_Development_post
_2015.pdf
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs292/en/

5. Factors for Higher
Vulnerability of Children
Developmental:
exposure to smoke
during the
formative years
Behavioural:
unaware of the
hazard (e.g. eating
soil)
Physiological:
reaction to certain
toxins more severe
in children
5
ENVIRONMENT

6. 6
2. POLICY APPROACH

7. 7
Monitorable Targets of the Twelfth FYP for Children
1. Improve the Child Sex Ratio from 914 in 2011 to 950 by 2017.
2. Prevent and Reduce Child Under nutrition (percentage of underweight
prevalence in children 0-3 years) by half (50 per cent) of the NFHS-3
levels.
3. Reduce anaemia in girls and women by half (50 per cent).
4. Ensure that all children receive a protective environment at family
and community levels and through health and child care centres,
schools and other facilities.
5. Ensure that 80 per cent or more panchayats, districts and cities
progressively become child friendly.

8. 3. CHILD CENTERED PROVISIONS
8

9. Child Friendly
Provisions
At Schools
1. Stringent guidelines
for Indoor Air Quality
Control
2. Pest Management
and regular checks of
playground soil quality
At Homes
1. Well ventilated
houses for better indoor
air quality
2. Smokeless chulhas
In Neighbourhood
1. Development of eco-
friendly neighborhood
2. Child audit of
recreational spaces like
parks, playgrounds, etc.
9

10. Community
• Keep the environment
clean
•Education and vigil
•Child’s perspective as
against Child Centered
Perspective
•Child Participation
Civil Society
•Sensitization of the
Municipal Corporations
•Advocating a Right Based
Approach to cleaner air,
soil (environment in
general)
•Promote Innovative
approaches suitable for
slums: e.g. bio-toilets by
DRDO
Policy Makers
•Mandatory pre-set
evaluation criteria for
project appraisal
•Mandatory baseline
survey prior to scheme
formulation
•Installing air pollution
monitoring device in areas
for creating a real-time
database
•Child Budgeting /Audits
10

11. Baby Friendly Toilet Designs A Community Radio Programme
by Children
11
Source: http://www.thehindu.com/ Source: http://blog.indicorps.org/
Leading the Way

12. 12
4. CONCLUSION

13. Monitoring the
impact on children
Engaging children as
primary stakeholder
First and second
level consultation
with target group
and formulation by
experts
Based on Child
Participative
Methodologies
Baseline
Survey
Draft
Formulati
on
Consultat
ion
Policy
Formulati
on
*An example framework for incorporating CFCs in policies and
planning
13

14. 14
Scheme Design
Level
Project Appraisal
and
Management
Implementation
Monitoring
LevelsofImplementingChildImpact
Indicators

15. 15