12 lakh Indian kids still do hazardous work

Two decades after a nationwide ban on child labour in hazardous industries was introduced, over 12 lakh Indian children, aged between five and 14, continue to work in dangerous occupations like construction, and the manufacture of beedis (an indigenous cigarette in which tobacco is rolled in a tendu leaf), bangles and fireworks.

Based on the 2001 census, 252,000 children are engaged in beedi manufacturing and 208,833 in the construction sector. An estimated 185,595 children are employed as domestic help and in dhabas (small roadside eateries); 49,893 children work in auto-repair workshops.

Of the 12,19,470 children employed in hazardous industries, around 3.74 lakh were rehabilitated and put in schools under the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) whose objective is to take children out of the workplace and send them to school, say labour ministry sources. A November 13 release says that the government plans to extend the NCLP, now operational in 250 districts in the country, to all districts with a sizeable number of child workers employed in hazardous occupations.

The ministry has urged the Planning Commission to double its funding during the upcoming 11th Five-Year Plan (2007-2012). In the Ninth Plan, the NCLP was allocated Rs 250 crore to make the project operational in 100 districts. In the current Tenth Plan, Rs 604 crore was allocated towards implementing the project in 250 districts. The government hopes that with more money the NCLP project can be extended to all districts in the country.

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh has the dubious distinction of having the largest number of child labourers in the country, according to official data. The north Indian state has 19.27 lakh child workers, according to the 2001 census, followed by Andhra Pradesh, with 13.65 lakh. Rajasthan follows with 12.62 lakh child labourers; Bihar has 11.17 lakh. Madhya Pradesh ranks fifth with 10.65 lakh. West Bengal (8.57 lakh), Karnataka (8.22 lakh) and Maharashtra (7.64 lakh) are other states that top the list.

While Delhi has 41,899 child labourers, others down the list include Sikkim (16,457), Tripura (21,756) and Kerala (26,156).

Among the union territories, Lakshadweep has 27 child labourers, Daman and Diu 729, Pondicherry 1,906 and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1,960.

Thirteen states and union territories have witnessed a decline in the population of child workers since the last census. But, on the flip side, 18 saw an increase in the number of under-age labourers, mainly in the north and northeastern states.

At least 72 occupations have been declared hazardous under the Child Labour (Abolition and Regulation) Act, 1986. On October 10, 2006, the government also banned the employment of children as domestic help and as workers in hotels, eateries, spas, etc, after declaring these occupations hazardous. However, given the government�s failure to stop child labour in industry, activists say the recent ban on child labour in the hospitality sector and as domestic help is likely to prove as ineffective.

Source: Info Change More

User comments

There are no comments