INTRODUCTION
Children’s are been considered as the biggest gift to mankind gifted by the God and the Childhood is the precious and key stage of human build-up as it is also considered as the base of the future expansion of any society also Development of any nation is connected with the life of the children residing in their country as they are the only one who is going to take the lead of the Country after growing up.
According to Indian Constitution, Child labour can be defined as any person who is working below the age of 14 years for economic activity or as those children’s are not able to go to school because of certain social issues like unemployment in their family or parents are working in low-income jobs.
Definition of forced labour is made by 3 components:
- Work or service consisting of all types of petty works in any kind of industry or sector for direct or indirect economical needs to be get catered.
- Quantum of penalty refers to the wide range of penalties enforced to oblige anyone from working in any kind of derogatory or bad situation.
- In-voluntariness the word “voluntariness” is meant as a free consent from a worker to get a job and it is based on his whole decision whether he want to leave at any time without any problem.
Child Labour means small kids has to work in industries and to earn as adults to get some economic source for their family. When children spend their life as adults in the worst environment’s it acts as a derogation of their childhood as they will now will not be able to attend school, roam freely or can’t play with their friends like before. This kind of work impacts very badly on children’s as it effects mentally, physically and socially.
Child labour is banned in all most every countries. Largely these small childs or forced labour is compelled or forced to do deliver their tasks in small tea vending stores, restaurants, motels, hotels, small shops, delivering milk, mopping and cleaning of utensils in urban areas and distributing newspapers or some work in huge areas as in construction of bricks, making of fire crackers. The major problem of creation of child labour is poverty.
The occurrence of child labour is a considered as a problem to the human society. It is considered a worst stigma upon the society and shame on the arena of mankind as the child who are the future of any country or gift by the God is Forced to do Shameful Acts.
Causes for Child Labour
- Poverty: As lots of population in India is not so economically developed as others due to which the poor families has to send their children’s out in a minor age, to fetch some money by which they will be economically get strong to fulfill their food desire of their family. The small Children’s has to do these types of work to earn money to fill the stomach of their family.
- Low ambitions: As the parents of these children are not educated and always work as petty nature of jobs in their life they do not possess any thoughts to do big in their life and for any children their parents work, is the ideal thought of any child to choose the profession but their parents has done petty nature of work so children is only accessed to do those work only
- Early Marriages: There is a problem with Illiterate large population as they believe to marry in early age as it can stable their life due to which it leads to birth of children’s which causes overpopulation . As their parents do not have a fixed or good job by which they can provide financially or moral support to their family.
- Family Necessity: Many poor families do not have the money so there is no option left by sending their children out of the housed in their tender age of childhood to fetch some bread and butter by which they can survive.
- High cost of education: They are not able to afford the expenses of education rather the like to work in factories or earn money then going to school by which they will not has to starve for food.
Types of Child Labour in different Forms of industries:-
-
Agriculture Sector
- Cutting foods, tea and vegetables
- Collecting cotton from the fields
-
Manufacturing Sector
- Fireworks
- Surgical instruments
- Clothing’s and making of carpets
-
Mining and Production Sector
- Collection of charcoal and Chrome
-
Working in Hotels and restaurants Sector
-
Domestic Service’s
- Delivering Milks and other eatery items to the households.
- Debt bondage is termed as the forced labour, where minor children’s has to work in exchange to pay off the loans taken by the members of their family and now the boded labour/children’s are working against that loan to be get freed from that debt.
An e.g., Head of the family has handed the child to the party from whom the debt was being taken and now the child has to perform allotted tasks for the time period until the debt gets fully paid off.
- Slavery is considered as one person has to work for another person without of his own free will and the prison has no right to ask anything from his owner he has to perform the work assigned to him. This slavery culture is originated from the pre ancient Culture.
- Child Trafficking is the Illegal Trading (buying and selling) of small children for forced labour or for sexual activities as Minor Children are not very mature they are of much tendered age. So it becomes very easy for the traders to traffic them for many reasons as for forced labour, prostitution and to make child beggars on road.
- Serfdom is termed as when a minor children is compelled to live and deliver its duty work on land in name of another person or belongs to another person, with penny wage or nil wage.
- Forced labour is termed as when someone is compelled to work for any one forcefully against the will of person doing the work.
Constitution checks on Child Labour
Articles 23 and 24 of the Indian Constitution definer’s the word “child labour”.
There are various Acts formulated by the Indian government to keep a balancing environment for the working of labourer’s or as by they do not be able to get dominated or ill-treated by any of the owner of the company.
- The Employment of children Act, 1938 – This Act which holds a significant value was amended by child Labour (Prohibition and regulation) Act 1986. The prime objective of the Act was to eliminate exploitation of child labour in different places.
- Factories Act, 1948 – This act forbids the employment of any children under the age of 14 years in any business facility. The idea behind this is to safeguard the poor needy children who are freely/willingly like to work at the cost for their fitness and life.
- The minimum Wages Act, 1948 – This Act was enacted for the growth of the economic conditions of the operating people in industries. It is created for fixation of minimal costs of wages in employment to which provisions of this Act applies which meant to save the labour from exploitation and for the reason it authorizes the proper government to take steps to set minimal fees of wages within the certain industries. The aim of the Act is to set minimum costs of wages in which the labour force is not force to get exploited and they get enough money as in compensation for rendering of their services by which they can live e a good standard of livelihood.
- The Mines Act, 1952 – This Act defines that any child who has not completed the prescribed age of 15.This Act doesn’t prohibit the working of youngsters in mines, but specifically prohibits the presence of any kids in any part of a mine which is built underground or in any open position in which working mining operation is being carried on.
- The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 – This act was imposed on 26th may 1993 by the central government. The main idea behind this act is :-
(i) To create ban on the employment of children’s on those who has not completed the age of 14 years, in stated occupations.
(ii) This act has laid down the procedure to state amendments for the schedule of banned occupation and tasks.
(iii) Formulate the guidelines for the working environment for the children in employment places where they eligible to perform prescribed work.
(IV) Laid down the amount of fine for the employer of children if they kids are founded doing the violation the settled provisions of the said act and other similar acts which imposes bans the employment of the children.
- Right To Education – In Article 21-A of Indian Constitution states that “right to education” the state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of 6 to 14 years. The Supreme Court in its liberal interpretation of life and liberty states that Article 21 as the term liberty not only includes liberty but also includes livelihood and the right of human beings to live with dignity and also includes the right to education, and by which right to education is a fundamental right under the Indian constitution.
Indian Laws and Regulations on Child Labour
| Standard | It Should Meet International Standard | Minimum Age To Perform It | |
| Minimum Age to perform work | Yes | 14 | Section 3(1) of the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act |
| Minimum Age to Do Unsafe Work | Yes | 18 | Section 3A of the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act |
| Policy | Explanation |
| National Policy on Child Labour | States guidelines for dealing with unsafe labour conditions for children, and legislation activities for providing direct help to children in any form of problem. |
| National Plan of Action for Children | Classifies priority actions for attaining the objectives stated in the National Policy for Children it also Aims to accomplish the bridge courses and age appropriate classes for children who are being rescued from the child labour activities and child trafficking to meet the NPC agenda to ensure that all of these small children has the opportunity to access education. |
| State Action Plans on Child Labour | There are various State governments’ activities and schemes working to finish child labor. These schemes or working plans are till now in only some state government’s like: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Delhi, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh. |
References:-
Author: Pushkar Khanna,
Delhi Metropolitan Education affiliated to GGSIPU/ 2nd Year/ Law Student
