Siddarth Seth
Childhood is the most innocent phase of human life. When God has made it so beautiful, then we have no right to do any kind of wrangling with it. A good childhood is everyone’s fundamental right. Every child should have the right to be able to play with other children in childhood, to get proper education in school and to experience the beauty of nature.
The term child labour is something that we all have been hearing all our life and it has been debated over many years. Child labour is a serious issue for us on the international level. Child labour means the practice of involving children into any business activity either by force or by their own will.
Despite showing a decline in both 2001 and 2011 census, the child labour still continues to be a cause of concern for the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir.
A New Delhi based Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Population in its recently published report titled “How Far is India from Complete Elimination of Child Labour as per Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8.7” has projected that J&K will have 64.26 thousand projected child labour population in 5-14 years age group by 2025.
J&K had been ranked 3rd by the foundation in terms of child labour which gives enough indication about the prevailing grim scenario. The report further claimed that the UT is likely to retain the same 3rd spot in 2025 based on projected number of children as labourers.
In 2021, the total child labour population in India was 81.2 lakh which is expected to decline further to 74.3 lakh by 2025. State level estimates reveal that by 2025 only four states will be having about three fifths (56 percent) of the country’s total child labour population.
The States are Uttar Pradesh (30 percent), Bihar (12 percent), Maharashtra (8 percent) and Rajasthan (6 percent). Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Jharkhand are expected to have five percent each of the country’s total child labour population in 2025.
However, the Ministry of Labour and Employment has been implementing National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme for rehabilitation of child labourers through District Project Societies under the chairmanship of the District Magistrate.
Under the NCLP scheme, the children in the age group of 9-14 years are rescued / withdrawn from work and enrolled in the NCLP Special Training Centres (STCs), where they are provided with bridge education, vocational training, mid-day meal, stipend, health care, etc. before being mainstreamed into formal education system. NCLP scheme has now been subsumed under Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Scheme.
As per data available, total 1225 Special Training Centres in 59 districts were operational for rehabilitation of 33573 child labourers enrolled there as on March 31, 2021. In J&K, there is NCLP Operational District while the total strength of STCs is 10.
Under the flagship scheme, the Ministry of Labour and Employment also provides grants in aid to District Project Society which in turn releases to the concerned implementing agencies for operation of Special Training Centres.
In 2020-21, J&K received a total grant of Rs 32.48 crore whereas no grants were issued to the UT in 2019-20 and 2017-18. In 2018-19, an amount to the tune of Rs. 56.14 lakh was released whereas in 2016-17, a grant of Rs 61.04 was released.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that about 152 million children aged 5 to 17 are engaged in child labour. They are found in precarious situations – working in mines, with chemicals and pesticides in agriculture, or with dangerous machinery. They toil as domestic workers in homes, workshops and plantations. In almost all regions, boys and girls are equally likely to be involved in child labour, with girls far more likely to be involved in domestic work.
Child Labour refers to the physical exploitation of the children by engaging them in work that seperates them from their childhood, education, growth, and development and is physically and mentally unhealthy. Strict laws prohibiting child labour are in place in countries worldwide, including India, but there is a need to implement them more effectively than before.
The UNICEF (United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund), a United Nations agency is responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to the children around the world. UNICEF states, poverty is the biggest cause of child labour in India as well as in the other developing and under developed countries around the world.
Due to poverty, children are subjected to labour to help their family’s income. Also, the absence of educational infrastructure in rural India and a lack of awareness are reasons behind child labour in India.
World Statistics reveal that nearly 218 million children worldwide are employed. These children fall in the age group of 5 to 17 years, and approximately 152 million are, in the true sense, employed as child labour.
Statistics also reveal that nearly 73 million children worldwide work in life-threatening conditions.
Going by the numbers, Africa has around 72.1 million children employed as child labour, nearly half of the world’s figure of 152 million. Asia and the pacific have 62.1 million child labourers; America has 10.7 million child labors, while Central Asia, Europe, and Arab states have 5.5 million and 1.2 million, respectively.
Major Sectors in India Employing Children as Child Labors
Fireworks: Children in this sector often work in cramped spaces and are exposed to dangerous chemicals and hazardous substances, posing a risk to their health and life. They are also forced to work for longer hours during the festive season.
Garment Industry: These industries operate in small owner-managed setups mainly operated from homes. Thousands of children in Delhi are employed by the garment industry and are subjected to loud noise, extensive working hours, and sharp tools.
Brick Kilns: The brick kiln industry of India has long been witnessing child labour. Often the children in brick kilns work for long hours with their parents. Children working in the brick kiln are subjected to hazardous conditions and are exposed to toxic fumes and heated temperatures.
Agriculture: Agriculture sector is India’s biggest buyer of child labour. Children are hired for everything from cotton and cottonseed production to sugarcane, soyabean and paddy transplantation, and long work hours for low pay and poor living conditions.
Child Labour Laws
The Government has passed number of laws such as the Child and Adolescent Labour Prohibition Act, The Right to Education Act, 2010 and implemented schemes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan which encourage the enrollment of children in schools.
It also claims that the number of child labourers has come down from 1.25 crore (Census 2001) to the current figure of 49.6 lakh (National Sample Survey).
Not surprisingly, these figures were arrived at on the basis of a sample size of approximately 70,000 across the nation.
To Eliminate Child Labour
The population is another major factor in India, which has lead to poverty and lack of education. The families with a lack of knowledge and education have many children, leading the children to earn for family livelihood. The control in the population is the biggest concern in itself. Because of the growing population, children are not getting basic needs, such as food and health facilities. The Government has initiated the concept of mid-day meals in Government schools to burden down the family responsibility.
Providing of proper education to the children. Indian constitution has clearly mentioned free education for every child who is below the age of 14 years. Education is the important key to fight against child labour; however, the families below the poverty line do not allow their children to go to school.
In 2015, UN member states adopted 17 global goals for sustainable development, including Target 8.7 to end all forms of child labour by 2025. Eliminating child labour will help address poverty, strengthen economies and positively influence education, worldwide. To achieve this target, Global March is working way hard with its global members and partners including through a global alliance called ‘Alliance 8.7’ to shut child labour by 2025.
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