Vision

To create a child friendly society, where all children are free from exploitation and receive free and quality education.

Mission

To identify, liberate, rehabilitate and educate children in servitude through direct intervention, child and community participation, coalition building, consumer action, promoting ethical trade practices and mass mobilisation.

Values

The organization follows a set of values, important of which are:

• Affection
• Altruism
• Belief
• Bravery
• Care
• Commitment
• Courage
• Efficiency
• Freedom
• Hope
• Individuality
• Integrity
• Liberalism
• Professionalism
• Wisdom
• Objectivity
• Optimism

Overview

Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) is not a conventional NGO or a typical institution; it is the ray of hope in millions of hearts, the first dream in their eyes, and the first smile on their faces. It is the sky and wings together for innumerable children, excluded from human identity and dignity, with a desire to fly in freedom. It is the tears of joy of a mother who finds her rescued child back in her lap after years of helplessness and hopelessness. It is a battle to open the doors of opportunities, a fire for freedom and education in the hearts and souls of thousands of youth committed to wipe out the scourge of slavery and ignorance from the face of mankind.

At a Glance

Team

Founder : Mr. Kailash Satyarthi

Born in 1954 in the historical town of Vidisha, Madhya Pradesh in Central India, Kailash Satyarthi is synonymous with the crusade against child slavery. In 1980, when he gave up a promising career as an electrical engineer to campaign against servitude in India, child slavery was a non-issue. As a crusader, Satyarthi has had the unprecedented opportunity to sit and motivate the indigenous people, tribes and the poor in remote villages of Africa, Latin America and Asia, as well as address the UN General Assembly, International Labour Conferences, UNESCO's High Level Group on Education and Parliamentary hearings in many countries. He has been regularly invited to address some of the biggest international congregations of workers, teachers, and students as a keynote speaker. As a grassroots activist, he has led the rescue of over 67,000 child slaves and developed a successful model for their education and rehabilitation. As a worldwide campaigner, he has been the architect of the single largest civil society network for the most exploited children, the 'Global March against Child Labour', active in over 140 countries.

Governing Body

President : Ramesh Gupta

India’s eminent lawyer and Former President of Delhi Sate Bar Council (the statutory body of over 40,000 lawyers in the Supreme Court, High Court and all District and Session Court), Ramesh Gupta has been a close ally of the movement since its inception. He is a pioneer in anti-bonded labour movement involved in rescue operation of bonded labourers from brick kilns in the 80s.

Chairperson : Rama Shankar Chaurasia

One of the most dedicated activists of the movement; Prof. Rama Shankar Chaurasia not only liberated thousands of bonded labourers and children at his behest but also led several campaigns. He alleviated himself from the level of BBA's district secretary in Mirzapur (UP) to State Secretary, State President and National General Secretary before becoming the Chairperson.  The general election of BBA (which has over 80,000 individual members), was held on January 18th, 2007 in Delhi.  The National Chaupal (General Assembly) consisted of over 200 elected representatives from various districts, states and the allied legal entities.

National Secretaries

Vinay Singh
Lanu Ji, as he is affectionately called by colleagues, is a scholar with three masters degree and an expert in various fields including art history. He led the campaign for elimination of child labour in circus industry and is responsible for all the rehabilitation activities.

Sheetal Raina
Ms. Sheetal Raina has been associated with BBA for many years. She took communication one step ahead and helped mobilizing the media to sensitize masses. Under her able guidance many documentary films were made by BBA. She is the backbone of our most successful campaigns and events.

Rakesh Senger
A highly motivated and enthusiastic youth leader, he has worked as a volunteer and field worker in the organization. He has designed and executed several campaigns, events, fund raising concerts, rescue operations; media propels etc. and is now the National Secretary. He is currently in charge of all victims assistance activities including investigation, rescue, rehabilitation and follow up of child laborers.

Bhuwan Ribhu
An advocate by profession, Bhuwan Ribhu has been a pioneer in the movement against trafficking for forced labour. He is also responsible for various amendments in legislation and policies through Public Interest Litigations. He is now in charge of all operations with BBA.

Evolution
In 1998, a mass movement was ignited to create a child friendly society where all children are free from exclusion and exploitation, and receive free education of good quality. The movement engaged itself in identifying, liberating, rehabilitating and educating children in servitude through direct intervention, encouraging child and community participation, building partnerships and coalitions, leading consumer actions, promoting ethics in trade, unionizing workers, running campaigns on a variety of issues – education, trafficking, forced labor, decent work, building child friendly villages and mobilizing the masses on a common action.

Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) symbolizes the largest grassroots movement against child labour, child trafficking and child servitude. We have a legacy of 25 years of crusading as an initiator of rescuing slave children (through direct action and raid and rescue operations) in India. On one hand, we organize global movements like the Global March against Child Labour in 1998 and on the other seek promotion of social justice and human rights especially child rights.

Established by a group of individuals in 1980, BBA was founded by Kailash Satyarthi, who after witnessing the atrocities inflicted on child labourers, felt the urgent need to address the issues of these physically, mentally, socially exploited, abused and violated children. Perils of child labour and bonded labour have been widespread and deep-rooted all across South Asia, jeopardizing the lives and childhood of millions of children. Child labour has been socially accepted and widely practiced throughout generations and thus no legal or political initiative existed against it. People saw nothing unusual about it and the rationale provided was that children were working due to poverty. However, South Asian Coalition on Child Servitude (SACCS) /Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) was the first civil society initiative to question and fight this evil. BBA is a leading advocate of abolition of child labour. It deserves the credit for not only being the first organization in India on this issue but the first Regional People’s Movement in the world. It has now emerged as an organization of thousands of individual supporters under the banner of ‘Bachpan Bachao Andolan’ as well as network of over 780 NGOs, Trade Unions, Human Rights Organization etc. dedicated towards the total elimination of child labour and quality education for all in India also known as the South Asian Coalition on Child Servitude.

BBA is known for its innovative initiative and multi-faceted intervention including secret raids and rescue operations to liberate slave children, making them leaders and liberators in Mukti Ashram, Bal Ashram and Girls’ Collective - the unique rehabilitation centers.

We have also been spearheading campaigns for free, compulsory and meaningful education, sensitization of parents, communities and school children, coalition building with Trade Unions, Teachers’ Organizations, Religious Groups, Political Parties and Employers, consumer action like Rugmark Foundation, Ethical Trade Initiative like Fair Play Campaign and several others. 
BBA has triggered a ripple effect in India and in international community. The tide is turning in favor of children; a ray has multiplied itself into a sun which is constantly supplementing brightness and warmth to the lives of unprivileged children. We need more support. BBA calls you to join hands in bringing a smile – the smile of freedom, love and peace, on the face of every child in this world.

Milestones

1980

• Founded by a small group of concerned people as the first anti – bonded labour movement in India – 15 yr old girl and 34 other bonded labourers rescued for the first time.

1981

• Started organizations with Stone Quarry and Brick Kiln Workers for their fundamental human rights i.e. freedom, food, drinking water, shelter, Medicare, education and safety for women.
• Filed public interest litigations in the Supreme Court

1982

• Rescue operations were intensively conducted to liberate slave children and adults in 10 different states.
• New avenues of slavery were exposed

1983

• Historic Supreme Court judgement on bonded labour – thousands freed by the court in one go
• Debt Relief Campaign in Rajasthan to secure freedom and dignity of tribal people

1984

• Initiated interventions in the Carpet industry, by liberating trafficked and enslaved children
• Our activist Dhoom Das assassinated

1985

• Kailash Satyarthi and 3 other activists were brutally attacked in Ramganj Mandi where they were raising the issue of mass sexual exploitation of tribal women
• Our activist Adarsh Kishore was assassinated

1986

• Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act
• Initiated activities in Nepal

1987

• Initiated activities in Pakistan

1988

• Historic Nathdwara temple entry march where Dalits (untouchables & non-Hindus) were strictly prohibited for 400 years
• Kailash Satyarthi and 5 Dalit bonded labourers were brutally beaten up by orthodox priests

1989

• South Asian Coalition on Child Servitude (SACCS) – a network of more than 750 CSO – through the active participation of child labourers of Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh assembled in New Delhi

1990

• Formation of Mukti Ashram
• Launch of Carpet Consumer Campaign in Germany

1991

• Start of massive “Anti – Firecracker Campaign” in 10,000 schools in India

1992

• South Asian Regional Meet at Mukti Ashram
• Carpet Children Campaign in Pakistan and Nepal

1993

• Bihar-Delhi March against child labour in the carpet belt

1994

• Bharat Yatra (5000 kms from Kanya kumari to Delhi zigzag march against child labour)
• Save the Childhood Year
• First social labelling on Child Labour Free Carpet “Rugmark” launched

1995

• South Asia March – Calcutta to Kathmandu
• “Anti-Child Domestic Labour Campaign”
• Formation of Parliamentary Forum on Child Labour

1996

• Launch of Fairplay Campaign in India
• Launch of CSR Campaign in Tirupur in Knitware Industry
• First ever Bal Sansad (Children’s Parliament) in India participated by over 10,000 children

1997

• Formation of Bal Ashram and Balika Ashram

1998

• Global March Against Child Labour across 103 countries covering 80,000 kms and participated by 7.2 million children, women and men

1999

• Testimonials of former child labourers at ILO
• ILO Convention 1982
• Global Campaign for Education

2000

• Start of the worldwide Global Action Week on Education

2001

• Nationwide “Shiksha Yatra” – Education March
• Start of the Bal Mitra Gram (BMG – Child Friendly Village) model
• Constitutional Amendment making Education a Fundamental Right
• Formation of Parliamentary Forum on Education

2002

• World Cup Campaign
• Launch of Circus research and campaign

2003

• Cocoa Campaign against child labour in Cocoa fields
• First National Children’s Parliament
• First All India Circus Conference
• First Round Table in New Delhi on Child Labour and Education

2004

• Children’s World Congress on Child Labour in Florence
• Kailash Satyarthi and BBA activists attacked by circus mafia during a raid
• Second Round Table on Child Labour and Education in Brasilia

2005

• Second Children’s World Congress on Child Labour and Education in New Delhi
• Third Round Table on Child Labour and Education in Beijing
• Joint Global Task Force on Child labour and Education constituted

2006

• On 10th October 2006, the Child Labour (Regulation and Prohibition) Act, 1986 was amended, banning work of children in road side eateries and homes etc. – result of rigorous lobbying and campaigning by BBA.
• From work to school campaign initiated.
• The Honourable President of India administered a pledge to the Indian judiciary and legal fraternity for free legal aid to victims of child labour.
• Om Prakash of Bal Asram won the International Children’s Peace Prize.

2007

• South Asian March Against Child Trafficking – a 5000 km. march with 1 million people which eventually led to amendment in SAARC protocol.
• Exposed slavery in the worlds largest garment giant GAP Inc. which resulted in a new initiative to end child labour by them.
• The First ever South Asian Regional Consultation on good practices in the elimination of Child Labour and trafficking of children for forced labour held.

2008

• India Action Week conducted – more than 500 child laborers rescued from various parts of India within one week.
• South Asia Congress on Child Labour and Education held.

2009

• Nepal March was organized to influence the enforcement of the fundamental right to education, generate awareness among the educationists, policy makers, civil society, general administration, potential parents and children, and envisage overall impact on the education system in Nepal
• All India Legal Aid Cell on Child Rights formed at Bachpan Bachao Andolan, Central Office on a direction issued by Honourable Chief Justice of India.