Street children in India's city Mumbai - part 1
The big cities of India, especially the commercial capital Mumbai, continue to be a major attraction for runaway kids.
Many factors such as domestic abuse, a cruel stepmother, failed examinations or just the appeal of the metropolis have been the lure for kids to take the risky journey after fleeing home, mostly from the rural outback.
For most runaway kids, railway stations are the first stop.
If they are lucky, some are traced and reunited with their families.
But many fall into bad company and are forced into bonded labor, sometimes into drug-trafficking, or other perilous activities since they are vulnerable and need to survive.
In the first of a two-part series, correspondent Murali Krishnan travels to Mumbai to look at how these kids cope.
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