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Arsenic is currently ranked as the most toxicant on the ATSDR 2015 substance priority list and is categorised as a Group 1 human carcinogen. Biota that are subjected to inorganic arsenicals through food, water, occupational or medical exposure pose a risk to the environment and to human health. The present study was carried out to investigate the toxicity caused by inorganic arsenic. After fertilisation, zebrafish embryos were exposed to sodium arsenite at several concentrations (100 nM to 600 nM) for 24 to 96 hpf. The indicators of teratogenicity (hatchability, morphological abnormalities, mortality), behavioural modifications (touch induced escape response (TIER), startle response (SR) and turning behaviour (TB)), biochemical testing (superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), and glutathione S transferase (GST)) and the expressions of tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) were investigated. The aforementioned parameters were found to be altered in embryos exposed to sodium arsenite. According to the findings of the current study, even a low dose of inorganic arsenic compound caused teratogenicity, behavioural abnormalities, altered enzyme activities and the expression of proinflammatory cytokines in zebrafish embryos.

A research study by Udayan Care (Beyond 18: Leaving Child Care Institutions-Supporting Youth Leaving Care, A Study of Aftercare Practices, 2019), in India, reveals that even though, as per the Juvenile laws of India, 'care-experienced' youth (care leavers) are mandated to receive aftercare services to age 21, and in certain cases to 23, the state of affairs for this section of disadvantaged youth needs to evolve. The study is based on a mixed method approach which uses a descriptive design to collect data from 435 care leavers and 84 key informants from five states of India. This paper investigates the emotional difficulties these young adults face when reaching 18 years of age, as they need to leave their care-settings without many options or support. It also highlights the factors causing emotional distress due to gaps in policies, systems and practices in Indian juvenile laws and practice. The focus of policies and stakeholders needs to be directed towards providing reasonable support for the emotional wellbeing of care leavers along with other domains essential for aftercare, including housing, physical health, independent living skills, education and vocational skills, social support and interpersonal skills, financial independence and career, emotional wellbeing, identity, and legal awareness.

In many situations of conflicts, natural disasters, or pandemics, it is always the children who are the most vulnerable. With the world shutting down due to the invisible threat to civilisation, the most affected are the children living in alternative care settings and the children who are on possible verge of family breakdown and ending up in institutions. Their limited knowledge and lack of independence often results in an increased exposure to several risk factors such as abuse, maltreatment, deprivations, and violations This paper aims at focusing on the recent developments in policies and arrangements in the alternative care space in the South Asian countries, namely Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of the study is to understand the impact of COVID-19 on alternative care space in South Asian countries, its effect on the children living in alternative care, and to understand the measures taken by respective governments in these countries to support them during the pandemic. An assessment of the recent developments in the policies related to alternative care space in different countries is crucial for understanding the problems faced when dealing with children in institutional care as well as the impact on the de-institutionalisation process due to COVID-19. This paper is a secondary review of desk research on such developments to understand the possible post-COVID-19 impacts on functionary and regulatory changes in alternative care systems for 'Children without Parental Care' in the South Asian region.

Every child is vulnerable just by virtue of being so, but upon entering the juvenile justice system, this vulnerability is aggravated due to a myriad of reasons such as violence, abuse and neglect, amongst others. This is the plight of 5% of the total population of children in India as per government statistics from 2018. With this in mind, where do we stand at protecting these children, giving them the needed care, support, resources and guidance and ensuring their protection and development once they are declared as children in need of the system's care and protection and sent to live in a child care institution? This paper attempts to bring to light, through the experiences of a social worker in India, the present day conditions of the children and the staff in these homes, focusing on the gap between what exists in theory in the law, the increase in the intensity of the trauma that the children experience in a place that is solely built with the purpose of taking care of them, the practical gaps in implementing laws and policies and hopes to provide suggestions to improve these conditions. The author works as a training coordinator with a leading child and youth care organisation based in Delhi and is currently implementing a state level project to support transitions from care and aftercare to care leavers.

The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) model propagates a life perspective where children exposed to traumatic and stressful experiences during childhood tend to grow up with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties, leading them to adopt health-risk behaviours that cause disease, disability, and ultimately an early death. In this paper, using the ACE model, we give case studies of two Out-of-Home-Care (OHC) children, raised in Udayan Ghars, (Udayan Care's model of Child Care Institutions) describing the impact of adverse experiences on their childhood and how it shaped their lives. In the case of Sonia, her traumatic childhood led her to experience extreme social, emotional, and behavioural problems that she was unable to overcome. Priya, on the other hand, exercised resilience and despite her traumatic childhood, was able to regulate her emotions and behaviours, becoming better-adjusted. Trauma Informed Care (TIC) was used in both the girls' cases during their rehabilitation at Udayan Ghars. However, success with Priya and failure with Sonia highlights the challenges caregivers face when caring for children with extreme ACE issues.

Udayan Care's aftercare programme for youth is designed to support the transition of young adults leaving the umbrella of the Udayan Care Ghars (Sunshine Homes) to independent and self-reliant living. The objective of this research is to understand the aftercare programme by applying the ecological systems theory of human development formulated by Bronfenbrenner (1979). The study focuses on eight analytical domains that are important for transition of youth namely education and employment, financial management, mental and physical health, legal rights and responsibilities, housing, goals and aspirations, safety and emergency skills, and resilience. It covered 60 youth who are either presently covered under aftercare programme or are Udayan Care alumni who have already availed the organisation’s aftercare support. The life experiences of youth have been presented through five ecological systems namely microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem and chronosystem. The analysis highlights the contributions of multiple stakeholders to the efficacy of the ecological systems. While the success of aftercare programme of Udayan Care is evident in many domains, there are challenges that still exist in regard to building resilience.

The L.I.F.E. Model (Living In Family Environment), is a model that attempts to create familial relationships, consistent living circumstances, and social/educational support systems necessary to move towards independent adulthood for orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC). In addition, the model addresses multiple losses, grief and related issues by employing attachment and trauma-based understandings to child rearing, while using positive psychology tools to encourage resilience and developmental growth. In the last 19 years, Udayan Care (located in New Delhi, India) through the Udayan Ghars Programme and Aftercare Services, has employed an evolved L.I.F.E. model for the children it cares for (Modi, Nayar-Akhtar, Gupta, & Karmakar, 2014). The model includes a family-like regulated support system, with long-term mentors who are set in place to help the children transition from institutional care to independent living. Typically, this takes place with the children moving out of the Sunshine Children's Homes into semi-regulated Aftercare services and then from Aftercare into the larger world. Given the normative transitions for all young persons, finding ways to effectively support institutionalised children as they transition to independent living is critical. In addition to the normative challenges, undoubtedly, institutionalised children come with a history of trauma and abandonment and often have long-term psychological difficulties that are unique to their population. Many such children end up in childcare institutions as there may be no extended family available, and the options for alternative care settings are severely limited. To understand the developmental trajectories of these children, Udayan Care has been participating in longitudinal research to describe the current and on-going changes in children's trauma, attachment, self-concept and ego-resiliency. This work has provided baseline information on the level and effectiveness of the programmes implemented at Udayan Care, and recommends future directions for addressing the children's needs. This paper explores the needs of institutionalised children as addressed by the Udayan Care Model. Such children have histories of severe neglect and need intensive efforts directed towards addressing attachment issues, affect dysregulation, behavioural difficulties, social skills, education and life skills training.