Context: Report of the Parliamentary Standing on Labour, Textiles And Skill Development Committee highlighted the gaps that remain in achieving the objective of elimination of child labour by 2025.
Meaning of child:
- Child and Adolescent Labour (prohibition and regulation) Act 1986 defined child as, a person who has not completed the age of 14 years.
Meaning of Child labour:
- ILO defined child labour, as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development.
Child labour in India:
- According to Census 2011: 1.26 crore working children in the age group of 5-14 as compared to the total child population of 25.2 crore.
Causes of Child Labour in India
Impact of prevalence of Child Labour:
- Negative impact on health: Especially children are working in hazardous industries such as lead mining, brassware and beedi making etc. For example, in industries like lead mining, exposure to toxins can result in lead poisoning, affecting the nervous system and causing developmental problems.
- Impact on education & skills: The time spent working in labour-intensive jobs detracts from opportunities for formal education and skill-building activities, limiting the child's future prospects.
- Permanent disabilities and premature death: Approximately 250 million children aged 5-14 worldwide are engaged in child labour, facing health issues like dangerous working conditions, malnutrition, fatigue, and anaemia. These conditions heighten the risk of work-related hazards, potentially resulting in permanent disability and premature death (UNICEF).
- Risk of drug abuse: Due to factors such as vulnerability to exploitation, limited access to education, psychosocial stress, and exposure to peer influences.
- Undermining adult labour: It can depress wages for adult workers, as employers may prefer to hire cheaper child labour instead, can contribute to unemployment among adults.
- Perpetuating discrimination and inequality: Children engaged in labour may be seen as inferior or less deserving of opportunities, perpetuating discrimination and inequality.
- Demographic challenges: It can contribute to demographic challenges by affecting the health and well-being of children, potentially leading to higher mortality rates and lower life expectancy, that can impact population growth and demographic structures.
- Inter-generational poverty: Families in impoverished conditions may resort to sending their children to work due to economic necessity, this perpetuates the cycle of poverty, as the lack of education and skills hinders the children's ability to escape poverty in the future.
Government initiative for protection of child:
Constitutional provisions:
- Article 15 (3) permits positive discrimination in favour of children
- Article 21A which makes education free and compulsory between the ages of 6-14 years;
- Article 23 states that children should not be forced to work at cheap wages due to their economical or social disadvantage.
- Article 24 that prohibits employment of children in factories and mines.
- Article 39, which requires the State to direct its policies to ensure the tender age of children is not abused.
Legislative initiatives:
- National Policy on Child Labour, 1987. To adopt a gradual & sequential approach with a focus on rehabilitation of children working in hazardous occupations.
- National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme ,1988: For running of special schools for child labour withdrawn from work.
- Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, (CALPRA ) 2016: Prohibits the employment of children below 14 years.
- Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2000: It includes the working child need of care and protection, without any limitation of age or type of occupation.
- The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act 1976: Aimed at eradicating bonded labour, a form of modern-day slavery where individuals are forced to work in deplorable conditions due to economic exploitation.
- Pencil: To ensure effective enforcement of child labour laws and end child labour.
Judiciary Approach:
- Unni Krishnan Vs Andhra Pradesh: The SC held that children up to the age of 14 had a fundamental right to free education.
- Neeraja Chaudhary Vs State of Madhya Pradesh: SC stated that the Child Labourers should be rescued and provision for their rehabilitation should be made.
- U.P. Bandhua Mukti Morcha Vs Union of India: SC stated that if no steps are taken under Bonded Labour System Act 1976 by the Government, then it would be a violation of Article 23 of the Constitution.
- Sheela Barse Vs Secretary, Children Aid Society and Others: SC held, If there be no proper growth of children of today, the future of the country will be dark. It is the obligation of every generation to bring up children who will be citizens of tomorrow in a proper way.
- M. C. Mehta Vs State of Tamil Nadu: SC has not allowed children to work in a prohibited occupation.
Challenges to eliminate child labour:
- Definitional issue: According to the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 (CALPRA), the panel noted, ‘child’ is defined as someone between 14-18 years and Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, child’ is defined as someone between 6-14 years.
- Issues with Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016: Allows child to be employed in “family or family enterprises”.
- Employment of children in the CALPRA Act is a cognizable offence, whereas under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, it is a non-cognizable offence, leads to ambiguity as well as delay in justice to the aggrieved children.
- Age identification of children: Difficult task in India due to the lack of identification documents like school registration certificates and birth certificates, creating loophole in the law to exploit.
- Informal economy: A significant portion of child labour is found in the informal economy, making it harder to regulate and monitor due to weak regulatory oversight.
- Acceptance among society: Deep-rooted cultural norms, economic pressures, and historical traditions can contribute to the acceptance of child labour in some communities.
- Corruption and poor enforcement of law: Widespread corruption can undermine efforts to enforce existing laws against child labour, allowing exploitative practices to persist.
- Lack of proper rehabilitation of children saved from child labour
Way forward to eliminate child labour:
- Ensure uniformity in the definition of child.
- Institute district-level funds, through collected fines from child labour employers, allocating an appropriate amount for the rehabilitation of child laborers. This initiative should follow the provisions outlined in the Central Sector Plan for the rehabilitation of bonded laborers, ensuring immediate relief and rehabilitation for child laborers.
- Establish a national-level child tracking mechanism to facilitate coordination among the states/Centre.
- Similar provisions should be introduced for the CALPRA Act, as mentioned in the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, for taking action against the police for not registering FIRs.
- The responsibility of reporting children selling goods or begging at traffic lights should be assigned to the traffic police, and they should also be held accountable for not reporting such instances.
- The government should make positive list of occupations for non-hazardous industries and processes where adolescent can work.
- There should be an increase in the amount of the fine to 3-4 times the current value, and stricter punishments should be incorporated, such as the cancellation of licenses and attachment of property.