Problems Faced by Street Children in Selected Urban Area of Coimbatore

Street children in India are frequently exposed to abuse and extortion. Because they have no social status and no adults to protect them, street children identify being physically threatened and intimidated by adults as the one factor that contributes most to the misery of living on the streets. The study will provide a precise and comprehensive picture of street children in selected urban area of Coimbatore city. The objectives of the study are to examine the socio-economic profile of street children; to describe the reasons for skipping classes and factors affecting street children's education and to identify harassment and problems faced by the children. The data collected from 75 samples residing in Town Hall and Gandhipuram areaby adopting incidental purposive sampling technique during the period November 2014 to January 2015. The study found that majority of them faced physical harassment during their presence in the street. Hence, the government should take necessary action to protect children from harassment by police and public.