Children at Work Summary
The story revolves around Velu, an eleven year old boy. Velu ran away from his home because his father was an alcoholic. His father took away all the money he and his sister had earned and beaten them. Fed up with this daily beating, he decided to run away from home. After wandering in Coonoor all day, he boarded the Kanyakumari Express. He boarded the train without a ticket because he had no money.
He reached Chennai Central Station. Velu noticed that there were many people around who are in a hurry. He could also hear announcements from loudspeakers. Velu had traveled in an unreserved coach where people had been playing cards and shouting all night. Thus, he was unable to sleep and felt weak. At the same time, his legs were shivering. He felt alone in a new place and was sitting on a bench.
A little girl, Jaya saw him and talked to him. Jaya was a raggerpick. Initially, she was hesitant to talk to him but he told her that she could arrange food for him. Thus, when she had no choice, she agreed to accompany him. He took her through busy roads and traffic. Velu was a little scared seeing so many vehicles on the road. As he passed through the Central Jail, Jaya warned him never to be caught by the police.
They finally arrive at a marriage hall. Jaya finds two bananas and vadas in the garbage can. He offered food to Velu but he was hesitant to eat it. Being hungry, he had no choice but to eat it. Jaya gave Velu a vada and a banana and ate a banana himself. After having food, he took her to his house. It was a slum house. It was made from useless materials such as old tires, plastic sheets and brick.
Jaya also gives Velu a sack and asks him to help her. She explained to him that she would pick all the scrap materials from here and there and then sell them to the scraper. The scraper sells them in factories. Thus, Velu now also became a ragpeaker. However, he decided that he would quit this job of Ragpikar as soon as he got another job.
The story teaches us to treat children appropriately so that they do not take such extreme steps. It also teaches us that we will help such children.
0 Comments