Child Line is a 24 hour emergency phone service for children in difficult circumstances. Any child in crisis can dial 1098 free of cost and speak to a friendly, experienced counsellor.

The service seeks to aid any child below the age of 18 who is injured, sick, exploited, abused, in danger, or lonely. They may be street children living on the pavement or railway station, or normal children with normal families. Parents often call in search of a missing child.

21001 children were helped by our Child Line service in 2008.

Many children who call simply require information, advice or someone to listen, but in more acute instances I-India sends out its ambulance. In these cases it might be that only medical care is needed, but where the child has been abandoned or run away from home, intervention is often required. Child Line personnel will attempt to locate the family of the child and unite them. If this is not possible, or not in the child’s best interests, then the child can stay indefinitely in one of I-India’s homes. Occasionally, a child may be referred to another concerned organisation.

Child Line represents a safety net to thousands of children every year. It was established in 1996 in Mumbai by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and now operates in 83 cities across India. The service began in Jaipur in 2000 and its primary operator there is I-India. I-India has an excellent track record in running the program and police and hospitals frequently call on behalf of children needing assistance. We operate the service 24 hours a day from an office on our Child Inn campus. Our staff are also engaged in public awareness and outreach activity.

The program’s chief donors have been: Child Line India Foundation, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Unicef and corporate sponsors.