Legal Compliance in Child-Centric NGOs: Enabling the Organisation to
Protect the Child

Avani Malhotra

doi:10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i08.005

Title: Legal Compliance in Child-Centric NGOs: Enabling the Organisation to Protect the Child
Authors: Avani Malhotra
Journal: International Journal of Social Science and Economic Research (IJSSER) ISSN: 2455-8834 Volume: 11 Issue: 8 Publication Date: August 2026 DOI: 10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i08.005
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Avani Malhotra The Shri Ram School Moulsari
MLA 8 Malhotra, Avani. "Legal Compliance in Child-Centric NGOs: Enabling the Organisation to Protect the Child." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research, vol. 11, no. 8, Aug. 2026, pp. 3678-3700, doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i08.005. Accessed Aug. 2026. APA 6 Malhotra, A. (2026, August). Legal Compliance in Child-Centric NGOs: Enabling the Organisation to Protect the Child. Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research, 11(8), 3678-3700. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i08.005 Chicago Malhotra, Avani. "Legal Compliance in Child-Centric NGOs: Enabling the Organisation to Protect the Child." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research 11, no. 8 (August 2026), 3678-3700. Accessed August, 2026. https://doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i08.005.
References Bal Raksha Bharat. “Key Factors to Identify a Trustworthy Child Protection NGO.” Bal Raksha Bharat, 11 Aug. 2025, www.balrakshabharat.org/blog/others/key-factors-to-look-for-in-a-trustworthy-ngo/. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [2] . Bal Raksha Bharat. “Why Bal Raksha Bharat Is a Trusted Child NGO in India.” Bal Raksha Bharat, 21 July 2025, www.balrakshabharat.org/blog/others/why-bal-raksha-bharat-is-one-of-indias-most-trusted-ngos-for-child-welfare/. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [3] . BetterCare Network. “Systematic Review of Institutional Mechanisms for Child Protection in India.” BetterCare Network, 2026, bettercarenetwork.org/sites/default/files/2026-04/Institutional_Mechanisms_CP_India.pdf. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [4] . ComplyKaro. “A Guide to the POCSO Act: Legal Provisions & Child Safety.” ComplyKaro, 19 Nov. 2025, complykaro.com/a-guide-to-the-pocso-act-legal-provisions-child-safety/. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [5] . Manoharan, Arlene. “Child?Centred Social Work and Restorative Practices.” Child Centred Social Work in India: Journeys and the Way Forward, edited by Sharmistha B., Routledge, 2023, pp. 117–130. [6] . Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India. “National Policy for Children, 2012.” Press Information Bureau, 17 Apr. 2013, pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=94792. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [7] . NALSA (National Legal Services Authority). “Child?Friendly Legal Services for Children Scheme, 2024.” NALSA, 2024, cdnbbsr.s3waas.gov.in/s359f78862875fe585ce4b5ef63a3cc887/uploads/2025/07/202507021333336958.pdf. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [8] . Rai, Pallavi. “Stepping Up Child Protection: An Assessment of Child Protection Systems in South Asia, Including Reflections from Other World Regions.” SSRN, 9 Apr. 2025, papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5349349. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [9] . Roy, Smita. “Revisiting Roles of Community Institutions – Socio?Legal Scopes in Making Settlements Child Friendly.” Human Rights and Development Center Journal, vol. 12, no. 3, Gujarat University, 2025, pp. 438–450. [10] . Srivastava, Pratibha. “An Overview of Child Rights in India.” International Journal of Research in Emerging Social Sciences, vol. 1, no. 1, 2025, pp. 1–12. IJRTI, ijrti.org/papers/IJRTI2505168.pdf. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026. [11] . UN. “Child Policy in India: Protecting the Young for a Prosperous Future.” ResearchGate, 2024, www.researchgate.net/publication/381660353_Child_Policy_in_India_Protecting_the_Young_for_a_Prosperous_Future. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
ABSTRACT: Child?centric non?governmental organisations (NGOs) in India operate at the intersection of healthcare, welfare, and child?protection law, yet their legal?compliance infrastructure remains fragmented and under?enforced (Srivastava “An Overview”). Existing scholarship on child rights highlights both the robustness of India’s statutory framework, stretching from the Constitution and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 (JJ Act) to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO), and the persistent gap between legal guarantees and on?the?ground implementation (BetterCare Network, “Institutional Mechanisms”). This paper argues that, for child?focused NGOs, legal compliance must be reframed from a bureaucratic burden into a preventive safeguarding architecture that structurally reduces the risk of institutional harm to children (Roy 438). Using a mixed doctrinal and case?based methodology, it analyses statutes, rules, and policy instruments alongside practice?informed insights from CanKids, a child?centric NGO, to propose a practical compliance framework that links child?rights obligations, organisational governance, and funding?linked due diligence (Srivastava “An Overview”; Manoharan 117–30). The paper’s central contribution is the normative claim that rigorous, child?centred compliance enhances both programmatic integrity and long?term organisational sustainability, thereby aligning legal duty with mission?driven work (Bal Raksha Bharat, “Key Factors”).

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