<p>A major fire broke out Wednesday morning at Dev Pathology Lab in a complex in the Kalanala area in Bhavnagar city of Gujarat, swiftly engulfing the structure. Emergency responders, assisted by local residents, evacuated children, elderly patients, and medical staff while firefighting teams attempted to contain the blaze in the building, which houses multiple hospitals. According to initial information, the fire broke out in the basement of the lab building and smoke quickly filled the multi-hospital complex, creating panic among patients and staff.</p><p>At Shubham Neuro Care Hospital, firefighters shattered first-floor windows and deployed ladders to safely evacuate children. Newborns were gently carried out, swaddled in sheets along with their IV drips to ensure their safety.</p><p>Fire Officer Pradyumansingh Jadeja said the blaze began in the basement and quickly spread throughout the building. We have rescued people using stretchers and ladders. So far, 19-20 individuals, including children and newborns from the hospitals in the complex, have been safely evacuated. There are no casualties. Firefighting and cooling operations are still underway, with over 50 firefighters and six fire engines on the scene, he said.</p><p>All patients were shifted to the nearest hospital. Eyewitnesses said, around 20 children were admitted to the hospital on the first floor of the building. The fire department was immediately alerted, but residents didn't wait for them to arrive. Locals immediately placed a ladder on the window, wrapped the children in sheets, and began pulling them out one by one.</p><p>Given the scale of the fire and presence of patients, around 25-30 ambulances were deployed to shift the injured and other patients to safer locations.</p><p>Authorities say the situation is under control and have advised residents not to panic anymore.</p><p>Just two months ago, two major fire incidents were reported in the Ahmedabad city. A fire outbreak in the laundry section of SVP Hospital (SVP Hospital or Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Medical Sciences and Research) in Ahmedabad's Ellisbridge area, and a day before another fire at Vrundavan Children's Hospital near Paldi crossroads. This has indeed raised significant concerns regarding fire safety in healthcare facilities</p>

Fire Officer Pradyumansingh Jadeja said the blaze began in the basement and quickly spread throughout the building.

A major fire broke out Wednesday morning at Dev Pathology Lab in a complex in the Kalanala area in Bhavnagar city of Gujarat, swiftly engulfing the structure. Emergency responders, assisted by local residents, evacuated children, elderly patients, and medical staff while firefighting teams attempted to contain the blaze in the building, which houses multiple hospitals. According to initial information, the fire broke out in the basement of the lab building and smoke quickly filled the multi-hospital complex, creating panic among patients and staff. At Shubham Neuro Care Hospital, firefighters shattered first-floor windows and deployed ladders to safely evacuate children. Newborns were gently carried out, swaddled in sheets along with their IV drips to ensure their safety. Fire Officer Pradyumansingh Jadeja said the blaze began in the basement and quickly spread throughout the building. We have rescued people using stretchers and ladders. So far, 19-20 individuals, including children and newborns from the hospitals in the complex, have been safely evacuated. There are no casualties. Firefighting and cooling operations are still underway, with over 50 firefighters and six fire engines on the scene, he said. All patients were shifted to the nearest hospital. Eyewitnesses said, around 20 children were admitted to the hospital on the first floor of the building. The fire department was immediately alerted, but residents didn't wait for them to arrive. Locals immediately placed a ladder on the window, wrapped the children in sheets, and began pulling them out one by one. Given the scale of the fire and presence of patients, around 25-30 ambulances were deployed to shift the injured and other patients to safer locations. Authorities say the situation is under control and have advised residents not to panic anymore. Just two months ago, two major fire incidents were reported in the Ahmedabad city. A fire outbreak in the laundry section of SVP Hospital (SVP Hospital or Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Medical Sciences and Research) in Ahmedabad's Ellisbridge area, and a day before another fire at Vrundavan Children's Hospital near Paldi crossroads. This has indeed raised significant concerns regarding fire safety in healthcare facilities

<p>Fire Officer Pradyumansingh Jadeja said the blaze began in the basement and quickly spread throughout the building.</p>

Bhavnagar: Major blaze sweeps through multi-hospital building; newborns and elderly rescued

<p>Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that Congress should stick to the truth and added that people of Gujarat &#39;&#39;do not like poll time lollipops and false promises of the Congress&#39;&#39;.</p>

<p>Campaigning in Bhavnagar for the upcoming Gujarat elections, Modi said &#39;&#39;I am seeing videos of Congress supporters saying, vote for Congress on 9th and 14th and then we will do &#39;Dadagiri&#39; for 5 years. This is not the Gujarat that the people desire.&#39;&#39;&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">I appeal to the Congress to stick to the truth. The people of Gujarat do not like poll time lollipops and false promises of the Congress: PM Modi in Bhavnagar <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GujaratElection2017?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GujaratElection2017</a> <a href="https://t.co/CcT8neCelA">pic.twitter.com/CcT8neCelA</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/937619412281991168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Modi also criticised lawyer and Congress leader Kapil Sibal on the occasion. Congress has a very able lawyer in Kapil Sibal, he said and added &#39;&#39;he is always handling all the indefensible and wrong matters. In 2007 he came to Viramgam and said after the results are out Modi will be in Jail. He was very powerful in that government,&#39;&#39; Modi said.</p>

<p>Taking a dig at Congress for the drubbing it suffered at the Uttar Pradesh Assembly hustings, Modi said the people of UP knew the Congress and their leadership well and they rejected Congress repeatedly.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congress has a very able lawyer in Kapil Sibal. He is always handling all the indefensible and wrong matters. In 2007 he came to Viramgam and said after the results are out Modi will be in Jail. He was very powerful in that government: PM Modi in Bhavnagar <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GujaratElection2017?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GujaratElection2017</a> <a href="https://t.co/7A4hi0L5Uz">pic.twitter.com/7A4hi0L5Uz</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/937618384081973249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&#39;&#39;The people of UP know the Congress and their leadership well. And see how they have rejected Congress repeatedly,&#39;&#39; he said.</p>

<p>&#39;&#39;I fail to understand why is Congress once again doing what it always did in the past- divide people - be it on caste lines, communal lines, between villages and cities. Congress has learnt &#39;divide and rule&#39; from our colonial rulers rather well,&#39;&#39; Modi said.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">The people of UP know the Congress and their leadership well. And see how they have rejected Congress repeatedly: PM in Bhavnagar <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GujaratElection2017?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GujaratElection2017</a> <a href="https://t.co/gg3simshBJ">pic.twitter.com/gg3simshBJ</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/937615759500443656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Gujarat has grown due to the power of Shanti, Ekta and Sadbhavana, Modi said.&nbsp;<br />
&nbsp;</p>


Gujarat has grown due to the power of Shanti, Ekta and Sadbhavana, Modi said

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that Congress should stick to the truth and added that people of Gujarat ''do not like poll time lollipops and false promises of the Congress''. Campaigning in Bhavnagar for the upcoming Gujarat elections, Modi said ''I am seeing videos of Congress supporters saying, vote for Congress on 9th and 14th and then we will do 'Dadagiri' for 5 years. This is not the Gujarat that the people desire.'' I appeal to the Congress to stick to the truth. The people of Gujarat do not like poll time lollipops and false promises of the Congress: PM Modi in Bhavnagar #GujaratElection2017 pic.twitter.com/CcT8neCelA — ANI (@ANI) December 4, 2017 × Modi also criticised lawyer and Congress leader Kapil Sibal on the occasion. Congress has a very able lawyer in Kapil Sibal, he said and added ''he is always handling all the indefensible and wrong matters. In 2007 he came to Viramgam and said after the results are out Modi will be in Jail. He was very powerful in that government,'' Modi said. Taking a dig at Congress for the drubbing it suffered at the Uttar Pradesh Assembly hustings, Modi said the people of UP knew the Congress and their leadership well and they rejected Congress repeatedly. Congress has a very able lawyer in Kapil Sibal. He is always handling all the indefensible and wrong matters. In 2007 he came to Viramgam and said after the results are out Modi will be in Jail. He was very powerful in that government: PM Modi in Bhavnagar #GujaratElection2017 pic.twitter.com/7A4hi0L5Uz — ANI (@ANI) December 4, 2017 × ''The people of UP know the Congress and their leadership well. And see how they have rejected Congress repeatedly,'' he said. ''I fail to understand why is Congress once again doing what it always did in the past- divide people - be it on caste lines, communal lines, between villages and cities. Congress has learnt 'divide and rule' from our colonial rulers rather well,'' Modi said. The people of UP know the Congress and their leadership well. And see how they have rejected Congress repeatedly: PM in Bhavnagar #GujaratElection2017 pic.twitter.com/gg3simshBJ — ANI (@ANI) December 4, 2017 × Gujarat has grown due to the power of Shanti, Ekta and Sadbhavana, Modi said.

People of Gujarat do not like poll time lollipops and false promises: Modi in Bhavnagar

<p>&ldquo;I would like to ask them a question&rdquo;, said a boy standing up from a sea of children in pink scarves. My co-fellow and I had just introduced ourselves to the Balsena, as we had to the many new faces and people we had been meeting in the past few days. One of his eyes was stitched up and the scars of a badly done surgery were visible on his face. Yet, the conviction in his voice made me search for the speaker. &ldquo;What is your Dream?&rdquo; he asked with one eye, looking straight at me. I was stumped.</p>

<p>Sitting in the middle of a dusty field in the slums of Kumbharwada, 4 kms on the outskirts of Bhavnagar, with 60 crackling kids and smoke arising from the pile of plastic being burnt right next to us, I was taken aback with the depth of the question. In the days since we arrived, I had heard stories of children being beaten up by teachers, bullied on the streets, pressured to work, pressured to study, fending for themselves, having no one listen to them amongst others. Yet, here at <a href="http://shaishavchildrights.org/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">Shaishav</a>, I met children still curious to know more, willing to learn more, dreaming big and smiling from their hearts despite violence being a routine occurrence in their lives.</p>

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<p>Balsena team &lsquo;Morpeach&rsquo; having their weekly meeting at Kumbharwada. (Others)</p>
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<p>Balsena, literally meaning &lsquo;Children&rsquo;s Collective&rsquo; is the <a href="http://shaishavchildrights.org/maitree/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">flagship program</a>me of Shaishav in Bhavnagar. It is run by the children, for the children, with Shaishav acting as a facilitator. Established in 2003, Balsena is open to all children, regardless of class, gender, caste or religion, and is centred on a child-participation approach &ndash; where children can experience the power of collective strength, learn to develop empathy for other children and support each other. The children decide what they would like to learn about, discuss problems in their community, problem solve together, organise rallies and outings, amongst other things. Aged between 8-16 years, they are organised into teams (Balsena points) based on either their school or community. Each team holds a weekly meeting and participates in activities which focus on developing hard skills and soft skills.</p>

<p>The United Nations identifies children&rsquo;s basic rights to be Right to Survival, Right to Development, Right to Protection and Right to Participation (see CRY 2017). While provisions in the Indian legal system like <a href="http://ncpcr.gov.in/index1.php?lang=1&amp;level=0&amp;linkid=23&amp;lid=593" rel="nofollow" target="blank">POCSO</a> Act and <a href="http://righttoeducation.in/know-your-rte/about" rel="nofollow" target="blank">RTE</a> Act look at protecting the former three, the latter &ndash; Right to Participation &ndash; remains largely ignored. Shaishav aims to bridge this gap through programs like the Balsena. Viewing &lsquo;children leading change&rsquo;, Shaishav hopes to enable in children the confidence to make their own decisions.</p>

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<p>Children tallying votes for deciding on what shall be the activities for the weekly meetings this month. (Others)</p>
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<p>On my first day, I happened to witness a module on Child Rights being introduced to the Balsena. What was interesting though, was that it was not being &lsquo;taught&rsquo; to the children. Two Youth Fellows were facilitating the session. These were children from the Balsena who had been trained to lead and conduct the module, the weekend before. &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s decide among ourselves what are the five essential things we need in our lives&rdquo; said the fellow, and I listened in on what the groups were discussing.</p>

<p>&ldquo;Money can buy anything&rdquo;, said one boy with utmost seriousness. &ldquo;Therefore it is critical to our survival&rdquo;. &ldquo;But it doesn&rsquo;t buy clean air or water&rdquo; interrupted another. &ldquo;Clothes are most important, otherwise how will you go out and work to earn money?&rdquo; added another.</p>

<p>I watched the children debate their rights in smaller and then larger groups. They went on to play a game of snakes and ladders, integrated with child right pictures in it. Every time my piece landed on a picture, the children chimed in to describe the scene and what right it stood for. &ldquo;Look, the girl is sitting on the side while the males in the family are served and eat first. This is not right. She should get nutritious wholesome food also, and not just leftovers. This goes in her right to survival.&rdquo; And on went the game with each picture being categorised, debated and imbibed.</p>

<p>I wish I had known these rights as a child. I remembered the subtle gender dynamics in my family where girls would be called to help lay out the dishes as the boys continued watching television. While it was never explicitly stated that girls had to help out in household work, these forms of inequality persisted, and I internalised them into my idea of a family structure. Till much later, I never learnt to question them.</p>

<p>To be able to identify gender dynamics and spot subtle gender roles in the family and other environments can be extremely tricky, and it is even more challenging to teach children how to recognise it. But through games like this, it is possible. Here, children were being taught to identify specific scenarios, question what they saw and learned, and place this knowledge within a framework.</p>

<p>The children were being encouraged to think for themselves and stand up for what they believe&nbsp;in. They were learning to form opinions. A rally organised by the children in their communities yesterday was a&nbsp;testament to that. Shouting slogans against tobacco and alcohol, the children marched in the lanes of their neighbourhood, their voices resonating through the alleys and bringing people to their doorsteps.</p>

<p>Shaishav and its work through Balsena, demonstrate that children are capable of asking questions and taking charge of their own lives, if they are equipped with the right set of knowledge, values, direction and mentorship to do so.</p>

<p>Initially stumped by the boy&rsquo;s question, I think I have my answer now. My dream is to be able to watch each child find their voice, explore their curiosity and work towards making this world a more peaceful, green, harmonious and better place to live.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>This&nbsp;<a href="http://aif.org/children-leading-change-notes-from-the-field/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">article</a>&nbsp;was originally&nbsp;published on 20/ 10/ 2017 on <a href="http://aif.org/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">American India Foundation</a></p>

<p>Photo Credit:&nbsp;Adrian Fisk for Shaishav</p>


Children are capable of asking questions and taking charge of their own lives if they are equipped with the right set of knowledge, values, direction and mentorship to do so.

“I would like to ask them a question”, said a boy standing up from a sea of children in pink scarves. My co-fellow and I had just introduced ourselves to the Balsena, as we had to the many new faces and people we had been meeting in the past few days. One of his eyes was stitched up and the scars of a badly done surgery were visible on his face. Yet, the conviction in his voice made me search for the speaker. “What is your Dream?” he asked with one eye, looking straight at me. I was stumped. Sitting in the middle of a dusty field in the slums of Kumbharwada, 4 kms on the outskirts of Bhavnagar, with 60 crackling kids and smoke arising from the pile of plastic being burnt right next to us, I was taken aback with the depth of the question. In the days since we arrived, I had heard stories of children being beaten up by teachers, bullied on the streets, pressured to work, pressured to study, fending for themselves, having no one listen to them amongst others. Yet, here at Shaishav, I met children still curious to know more, willing to learn more, dreaming big and smiling from their hearts despite violence being a routine occurrence in their lives. Balsena team ‘Morpeach’ having their weekly meeting at Kumbharwada. (Others) × Balsena, literally meaning ‘Children’s Collective’ is the flagship programme of Shaishav in Bhavnagar. It is run by the children, for the children, with Shaishav acting as a facilitator. Established in 2003, Balsena is open to all children, regardless of class, gender, caste or religion, and is centred on a child-participation approach – where children can experience the power of collective strength, learn to develop empathy for other children and support each other. The children decide what they would like to learn about, discuss problems in their community, problem solve together, organise rallies and outings, amongst other things. Aged between 8-16 years, they are organised into teams (Balsena points) based on either their school or community. Each team holds a weekly meeting and participates in activities which focus on developing hard skills and soft skills. The United Nations identifies children’s basic rights to be Right to Survival, Right to Development, Right to Protection and Right to Participation (see CRY 2017). While provisions in the Indian legal system like POCSO Act and RTE Act look at protecting the former three, the latter – Right to Participation – remains largely ignored. Shaishav aims to bridge this gap through programs like the Balsena. Viewing ‘children leading change’, Shaishav hopes to enable in children the confidence to make their own decisions. Children tallying votes for deciding on what shall be the activities for the weekly meetings this month. (Others) × On my first day, I happened to witness a module on Child Rights being introduced to the Balsena. What was interesting though, was that it was not being ‘taught’ to the children. Two Youth Fellows were facilitating the session. These were children from the Balsena who had been trained to lead and conduct the module, the weekend before. “Let’s decide among ourselves what are the five essential things we need in our lives” said the fellow, and I listened in on what the groups were discussing. “Money can buy anything”, said one boy with utmost seriousness. “Therefore it is critical to our survival”. “But it doesn’t buy clean air or water” interrupted another. “Clothes are most important, otherwise how will you go out and work to earn money?” added another. I watched the children debate their rights in smaller and then larger groups. They went on to play a game of snakes and ladders, integrated with child right pictures in it. Every time my piece landed on a picture, the children chimed in to describe the scene and what right it stood for. “Look, the girl is sitting on the side while the males in the family are served and eat first. This is not right. She should get nutritious wholesome food also, and not just leftovers. This goes in her right to survival.” And on went the game with each picture being categorised, debated and imbibed. I wish I had known these rights as a child. I remembered the subtle gender dynamics in my family where girls would be called to help lay out the dishes as the boys continued watching television. While it was never explicitly stated that girls had to help out in household work, these forms of inequality persisted, and I internalised them into my idea of a family structure. Till much later, I never learnt to question them. To be able to identify gender dynamics and spot subtle gender roles in the family and other environments can be extremely tricky, and it is even more challenging to teach children how to recognise it. But through games like this, it is possible. Here, children were being taught to identify specific scenarios, question what they saw and learned, and place this knowledge within a framework. The children were being encouraged to think for themselves and stand up for what they believe in. They were learning to form opinions. A rally organised by the children in their communities yesterday was a testament to that. Shouting slogans against tobacco and alcohol, the children marched in the lanes of their neighbourhood, their voices resonating through the alleys and bringing people to their doorsteps. Shaishav and its work through Balsena, demonstrate that children are capable of asking questions and taking charge of their own lives, if they are equipped with the right set of knowledge, values, direction and mentorship to do so. Initially stumped by the boy’s question, I think I have my answer now. My dream is to be able to watch each child find their voice, explore their curiosity and work towards making this world a more peaceful, green, harmonious and better place to live. This article was originally published on 20/ 10/ 2017 on American India Foundation Photo Credit: Adrian Fisk for Shaishav

Why it is crucial to ensure rights of a child

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