Jaipur boy gets Intl Children Peace prize

Jaipur, Nov 21: Fourteen-year-old Om Prakash Gurjar, who hails from Dwarapur village of this district, has been awarded the International Children's Peace Prize for leading a campaign against child labour and slavery.

The peace prize, into its second year, is being given by Netherlands-based group Kids Rights. Om was awarded the prize by former South African president F W de Klerk in The Hague on Sunday evening.

Om was made to work as a farm labourer for three years and like millions of child labourers in India, had to suffer regular beatings, although his pay could not even ensure two meals a day.

However, Om was determined not to get exploited, and built up a network that aims to give a birth certificate to every child, which would protect from exploitation. Om also campaigned for free education in his village and helped set up child-friendly villages in Rajasthan.

Om has helped about 500 children get birth certificates, which proves their age and saves them from exploitation, slavery and trafficking.

UNI