Rescuing Nepalese children from India

Many Nepalese children cross into India, desperate to find work or in search of a bit of adventure. Some may be running away from domestic abuse. The open border between the two countries allows ease of passage. Once inside India, the children (usually teenage boys) may travel for vast distances on the Indian railway system. Unfortunately for them, their dreams can come to an abrupt end if they are picked up by the Indian authorities. They are then sent to appalling "children's shelters" that are effectively prisons. The children may have to remain in this very abusive and deprived situation for months or even years. No one is proactive about tracing their families or repatriating them - apart from us.

ChoraChori is the only Nepal-based charity that goes into India to find these children and set them free. We bring them back to Kathmandu where they have a short stop at our Children's Refuge and Rehabilitation Centre. While we are assessing family circumstances, the children can receive any immediate care they need, including mental health support at our Child Trauma Management Centre. The vast majority of children can be reunited with their families, but where domestic circumstances are poor - or if the children have been escaping domestic abuse - then we need to make other care arrangements. We take responsibility for such children's welfare, education and training needs.

Please donate to this invaluable work that is totally transformative - giving these children both freedom and a future.