2.4 Children, youth and the elderly notes

1. 2.4.1Child rights and development: constitutional provisions, UNCRC, ICDS, POSHAN and Mission Vatsalya

   India protects children through the Constitution, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and a set of schemes, now grouped by the Ministry of Women and Child Development under Poshan 2.0, Mission Vatsalya and Mission Shakti.

   Standard · 9 min · Full course
2. 2.4.2Right to education: Article 21A and the RTE Act 2009

   Article 21A, added in 2002, makes free and compulsory education for children aged 6 to 14 a Fundamental Right, and the RTE Act 2009 spells out how the State must deliver it.

   Standard · 8 min · Full course
3. 2.4.3POCSO Act 2012

   The POCSO Act 2012 is a gender-neutral law that defines sexual offences against anyone below 18, makes reporting compulsory and sends cases to child-friendly Special Courts.

   Standard · 9 min · Full course
4. 2.4.4Child marriage: Sarda Act to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006

   India moved from raising the age of consent (1891) and restraining child marriage (Sarda Act, 1929) to prohibiting it (2006), yet about a quarter of young women are still married before 18.

   Standard · 8 min · Full course
5. 2.4.5Juvenile Justice Act 2015: boards, child welfare committees, heinous offences and adoption

   The Juvenile Justice Act 2015 handles two groups of children: those in conflict with law (through Juvenile Justice Boards) and those in need of care and protection (through Child Welfare Committees), and it is also India's adoption law.

   Standard · 8 min · Full course
6. 2.4.6Child labour and trafficking: the 1986 Act and 2016 amendment, ILO conventions and the Palermo Protocol

   Since 2016 Indian law bans all work by children below 14 (with two narrow exceptions) and hazardous work by adolescents aged 14 to 18, while trafficking is tackled under Article 23, the BNS and the Palermo Protocol.

   Standard · 9 min · Full course
7. 2.4.7Youth: definitions, National Youth Policy and youth programmes (NSS, MY Bharat)

   India defines youth as people aged 15 to 29 (National Youth Policy 2014) and reaches them through the NSS, NCC, NYKS and, since 2023, the MY Bharat platform, while sociology sees youth as a social category shaped by generation, culture and protest.

   Standard · 7 min · Full course
8. 2.4.8Elderly: ageing in India and the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007

   India's elderly population is growing fast and is mostly female, rural and poor, and the 2007 Senior Citizens Act gives parents and senior citizens a quick, lawyer-free route to claim maintenance from their children and heirs.

   Standard · 9 min · Full course

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