Biography on Kailash Satyarthi II Kailash Satyarthi

Biography on Kailash Satyarthi

Kailash Satyarthi was born as Kailash Sharma on 11th Janur 1954 in Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh (India). He completed his education from Vidisha. He completed his degree in electrical engineering from Samrat Ashok Technological Institute, Vidisha and a post-graduate degree in high-voltage engineering. He worked as a lecturer for few year and gave up a lucrative engineering career to work for the welfare of child laborers. As he himself observed that many children were forced to work their parents while others were held a bonded laborers by business houses. He desperately felt the need for rescuing the children from such slavery in order to redeem their childhood. He decided to become a social worker and devoted his entire life to raise and fight for the issues of children's rights, child education and campaign against child labor. He is an Indian citizen and speaks for saving childhood for all the children, no matter where they are located or born. His unique campaign and vigorous work "Save the childhood movement" (Bachpan Bachao Andolan popularly known as BBA) has received world)wide fame and support. He founded the "safe the childhood movement" in 19809 AD and has acted to rescue the children from slavery and protect the rights of more than 83,000 children from 144 countries since then. His active campaign against child labor led the International Labor Organization to adopt convention no. 182 which bans the worst forms of child labor all over the world and governments around the world have no choice but to implement it. Kailash Satyarthi was inclined towards social work right from his own childhood. When Satyarthi was just 11 years old, he along with his friends, collected used books from his neighborhood in Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh and distributed them to children who needed them.

 

His work

Kailash Satyarthi gave up his engineering work in 1980 to join the Bonded Labor Front and founded his own organization - Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save the Childhood Movement ) same year. He started a journal called ' The Struggle Shall Continue' in 1980 in order to create awareness about the problem of child labor. He joined hands to conduct raids on factories from where he rescued several children and their parents who were held as bonded laborers. In the process, he took risk on his life and often get beaten up. The success of the BBA led to the creation of the South Asian Coalition on Child Servitude (SACCS) has till date liberated several thousand child laborers working in different industries. He established the 'Bal Ashram' in Rajasthan where the newly rescued children are rehabilitated and taught basic skills. In 1988, he led the Global March against child labor in order to motivate individuals and organizations to do their bit in the fight against child labor. The march proved to be a gross -root movement and several international organizations supported this march. Kailash Satyarthi has also been involved in the international advocacy body for child rights called the International Center on Child Labor and Education (ICCLE) . He also served as the president of the Global Campaign for Education from its inception in 1999 to 2011 and as one of its founding fathers along with ActionAid, Oxfam and Education International . Kailash Satyarthi started an initiative called "Rugmark" ( now known as Good-Weave International)  in 1994 to stop the carpet industries from employing children as laborer. Thanks to his relentless campaign against the child labor, carpets (rugs) sold under the Good-Weave label are considered to be free from his child labor.

 

International Credit for His Work and Several Honors

Kailash Satyarthi has served as a member of the UNESCO'S Education for All and has addressed the UN General Assembly, International Labor Conference , and the UN Human Rights Commission. Kailash Styarthi has received a number of honors, awards and recognitions both at national as well as international level for his work.

Kailash Satyarthi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 " for his struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education." Harvard University (the USA) Modern Day Slavery " by the US State Department in 2007 and the same year he was decorated with 'Gold Medal' of the Italian senate. Apart from India, European countries like Germany, Spain and Netherlands organized the value and importance of his work and awarded him with the Aachener International Peace award (Germany,  E compel He com1994); Alfonso International Award (Spain, 2008) ; Golden Flag Award ( the Netherlands, 1998) and others.