Children at Work: Runaway Velu in Chennai

Overview

• The story centers on children who work due to circumstances like supporting their families or escaping difficult home lives.
• These children often miss educational opportunities and recreational activities common among their peers.
• The story is about Velu, a 10-year-old boy who runs away from home and arrives in Chennai.

Velu's Journey to Chennai

• Velu travels to Chennai on the Kanyakumari Express without purchasing a ticket.
• Upon arrival at Chennai Central station, he feels exhausted, hungry, and confused.
• Velu is overwhelmed by the city's bustling environment.
• The train journey leaves him feeling unsteady.
• A porter pushing a trolley collides with Velu, adding to his disorientation.
• Velu sits down on a platform bench with a small bundle of belongings.
• The sheer number of people at the station overwhelms him.
• Announcements over the loudspeakers and people watching the TV contribute to the chaotic atmosphere.
• Velu feels miserable and exhausted after his journey.
• He ran away from his village two days before arriving in Chennai.
• He has only consumed peanuts and jaggery in the past two days.
• He couldn't sleep because of the other passengers playing cards and shouting.

Encounter with the Girl

• A voice calls out to Velu, inquiring if he is new to the city.
• Velu notices a girl around his age with stiff, brownish hair and a sack.
• The girl is collecting dirty plastic cups from the ground.
• She questions Velu, realizing that he has run away from his home.
• Velu tells her he left home to escape his abusive father.
• The girl says there are many children like him in the area.
• She tells him that making faces will not get him any food.
• She offers to help him find food and then walks away.
• Velu decides to follow the girl since he has nowhere else to go.
• The girl does not check to see if he is following her.

Roadside Observations

• The girl grabs his hand and pulls him across a busy road, dodging traffic.
• The girl warns Velu about standing in the road and getting hit by a vehicle.
• After crossing the road, Velu notices signboards featuring images of banians, car tires, and a woman holding a box.
• The signs are written in English, a language Velu cannot read.
• The girl leads him onto a wide bridge.
• Velu looks down at the city below, observing buildings, towers, and roads.
• The girl jokes that he will end up in Central Jail if he is not careful.
• She continues down the bridge with her sack.
• Velu inquires about the contents of her bag, and she says they are just things, bottles, and paper.
• The sun beats down on the tar road, making it hot for Velu's bare feet.
• He has trouble walking in the shade while keeping up with her.

The Kalyan Mandapam

• After walking for an hour, they stop in front of Sri Raja Rajeswari Prasanna Kalyana Mandapam.
• Velu struggles to read the sign in Tamil.
• The girl notices a car decorated with flower garlands outside the building.
• She takes a flower from the car and puts it in her hair.
• She leads Velu towards a garbage bin behind the hall.
• The garbage bin is overflowing with rubbish and surrounded by goats and flies.
• The girl offers Velu some half-eaten food from the garbage.
• She advises him to eat what he can find until he earns his own money.
• She eats a banana after finding only one more piece of food.
• She mentions they will find more food after lunch is finished.

Rag Picking

• She mentions that they are in Triplicane.
• She points to the Buckingham Canal filled with dirty water.
• Velu has never seen a canal with so much trash.
• Velu sees huts constructed from metal sheets, tires, bricks, wood, and plastic.
• The huts are unstable and look like they might collapse.
• The girl picks up an empty sack from outside one of the huts and throws Velu a pair of shoes without laces.
• She pushes the shoes toward him and tells him to wear them.
• Velu reflects that the only work he has done is weeding and grazing cows on a landowner's farm.

The Girl's Explanation

• When he asks if this job involves farms, she begins laughing at him.
• The girl tells him that they are rag pickers and collect waste.
• She says she finds the waste at rubbage beans.
• He asks why people would buy rubbish.
• The girl explains that they sell it to factories for recycling, which then make materials and money.
• The narrator conveys that doing this work is not the children's first choice, but their circumstances force them to do so.