Shantha Sinha (born 7 January 1950) is an Indian anti-

child labour Child labour refers to the exploitation of children through any form of work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular school, and is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Such e ...

activist. She is the founder of Mamidipudi Venkatarangaiya Foundation, popularly known as MV Foundation (which is named in memory of her grandfather Mamidipudi Venkatarangaiah), and is a professor in the Department of Political science in

Hyderabad Central University The University of Hyderabad (IAST: ''Hydarāvād visvavidyālayamu'') is a top ranking public central research university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Founded in 1974, this mostly residential campus has more than 5,000 students a ...

. She headed the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights for two consecutive terms (three years each); The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was set up in March 2007 under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, an Act of Parliament (December 2005). Sinha was its first chairperson. She was awarded the civilian honour of

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

by the Government of India in 1998.

Early life

Shantha Sinha was born on 7 January 1950 in Nellore district of coastal

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

. She completed her early schooling in

St. Ann's High School, Secunderabad St. Ann's High School is a private, Roman Catholic school for girls in Secunderabad, Telangana, India. It was established on 1 April 1871 and is affiliated to the ICSE/ISC board, Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations. Notable ...

After obtaining a master's degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

from

Osmania University Osmania University is a collegiate public state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad in 1918 , He released a farman to establish OSMANIA UNIVERSITY on the day of 28 August 1918. ...

in 1972, she earned her doctorate from

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is a public major research university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties an ...

in 1976 and joined the faculty of the University of Hyderabad.

Career

Sinha is an academician with Hyderabad Central University. In 2003, she was given the

Ramon Magsaysay Award The Ramon Magsaysay Award ( Filipino: ''Gawad Ramon Magsaysay'') is an annual award established to perpetuate former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay's example of integrity in governance, courageous service to the people, and pragmatic ideal ...

for Community Leadership, in recognition of her work in "guiding the people of AP to end the scourge of child labour and send all of their children to school". She has also been awarded the

(1999), and the Albert Shanker International Award (1999) from

Education International Education International (EI) is a global union federation (GUF) of teachers' trade unions consisting of 401 member organizations in 172 countries and territories that represents over 30 million education personnel from pre-school through universi ...

. She has also been awarded with Hyderabad Women of the Decade Achievers Award for Social Service by ASSOCHAM Ladies League. A rights activist, her contribution to a phenomenal reduction in child labour in nearly 1200 villages of Ranga Reddy district in Telangana is perhaps unparalleled. Recognizing her work, the Government of India appointed her as the first chairperson of the newly formed NCPCR. Sinha, Chairperson of the

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) is an Indian statutory body established by an Act of Parliament, the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005. The Commission works under the aegis of Ministry of ...

NCPCR
advocated amendment of the Child Labour Act and also requested for including adolescent labourers under its purview in presence o
Yogesh Dube
Member o
NCPCR
and Neela Gangadharan, Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Welfare, in a function organised by

ILO The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and ol ...

, NCPCR and United Nations Children's Fund on the occasion of Anti-Child Labour Day.

References

External links

''Tough action sought against child labour on farms'', The Hindu, 10 October 2006
*
Interview, "Education, an antidote to child labour", OneWorld South Asia, 19 June 2010

MV Foundation

NCPCR
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sinha, Shantha Indian women academics Indian women activists Indian children's rights activists People from Hyderabad, India Ramon Magsaysay Award winners Living people 1954 births Recipients of the Padma Shri in social work 20th-century Indian women scientists 20th-century Indian educational theorists Osmania University alumni Indian women educational theorists Women scientists from Andhra Pradesh Activists from Andhra Pradesh Women educators from Andhra Pradesh Educators from Andhra Pradesh 20th-century women educators