Shailja Mehta, Pooja Rao
The Covid-19 pandemic started as a public health crisis, calling for extreme mitigation measures ranging from social distancing to complete lockdowns. This led to a cascading effect that has impacted various aspects of our lives, ranging from the ability to earn, access to education and basic necessities and services, etc. The impact of this pandemic is further exacerbated on the lives of vulnerable groups like adolescents, who traditionally have a limited say in their future when it comes to completing their education and subsequent livelihood, the age at which to get married, and the choice of motherhood. Adolescents from marginalised communities and those in far-flung rural areas are further disadvantaged, as they are disconnected from the reach of mainstream media, and cannot make their voices heard.
With 253 million adolescents, it is critical for India to take stock of the unique challenges that the pandemic presents to a demographic that holds the key to the country's future.
With this background, the 10 to19 Community of Practice has brought together various critical stakeholders – ranging from funders, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), technical experts and the government – to initiate a series of webinars that aim to shed some light on the issues affecting vulnerable adolescents during the ongoing crisis. Titled ‘Voices from the Ground', the first webinar brought together field-level program functionaries, government officials and adolescent girl champions, to understand the impact of Covid-19 crisis on adolescents and their families.
The discussion focused on gauging the ground realities, unpacking the critical role played by frontline workers and understanding from the government officials the initiatives currently underway or being planned with a focus on adolescents and potential areas of collaboration with CSOs.
Some of the common concerns were:
1. Vulnerable adolescents, who were re-enrolled in schools as part of the outreach program run by communities and CSOs, are once again at risk of permanently dropping out of school. Many will be unlikely to continue attending school once the national lockdown ends due to economic stress. With UNESCO emphasising that as many as 111 million girls in developing countries may not return to schools in 2021, stakeholders from across the sector are echoing these concerns. Sushant Mihir Pathak from Quest Alliance — an NGO working on education — acknowledged that the staggered unwinding of the lockdown may result in educational institutions bearing the brunt of the crisis, with social distancing being a challenge in schools and colleges.
Girl champion Priyanka Kumari from Deoghar district in Jharkhand asserted that other peer educators and girl champions like herself are uncertain about continuing their education given the present scenario. She further added, “Most of us are concerned about our ongoing and future education needs. We would like to continue the progress we've made and not drop out of school, or even worse fall prey to early marriage.”
2. Due to the closure of schools and primary health centres, the last mile delivery of basic health care services and products like sanitary napkins, iron-folic acid (IFA) supplements have been adversely affected.
3. Accounts from all stakeholders indicate that adolescents are dealing with increased incidences of domestic abuse to due to extended periods of being stuck at home and the inability to get away from perpetrators or reach out to their support network of friends or trusted adult supporters (teachers, principals, community leaders and frontline workers). While CSOs are working to bridge this gap, they are struggling to remain connected to communities in remote geographies.
4. An environment of fear and uncertainty concerning their future is leading to high levels of stress and anxiety among adolescents. Furthermore, lack of physical activities such as outdoor sports, and reduced social interactions are also affecting their mental health, exacerbating often-untreated cases of depression or anxiety.
