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Suhas
Chakma |
The
routine reports of atrocities against child
labourers are often met with the lack of
commitment by the Government to implement the
Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act,
1986, and adhocism to eliminate the practice. In
1987, the Indian Government adopted a National
Child Labour Policy consisting of a legislative
action plan, focusing of general development
programmes for benefiting child labour wherever
possible and project-based plan of action for
launching of projects for the welfare of working
children in areas of high concentration of child
labour. The Supreme Court in its various
judgments, especially the judgements of December
10, 1996, in civil writ petition number 465/1986
and of May 7, 1999, in civil writ petitions number
12125/84 and 11643/85, issued numerous directions
for eradication of child labour. Yet, the numbers
of child labourers continue to increase. |
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The lack of
seriousness of the Gov-ernment is reflected in its
failure to collect precise data on child labour to be
able to formulate comprehensive programmes. According to
the 1991 census, there are 11.28 million working
children in India. According to the 1981 census there
were 13.6 million child labourers. The decadal
population growth rate during 1981-1991 was 23.86 per
cent. There were little child labour eradication
programmes until the adoption of the National Child
Labour Policy in 1987. Are we to presume that number of
child labourers have gone down by 2.32 million in one
decade despite decadal population growth rate of 23.86
per cent? Although the 2001 census data on child labour
is yet to be released, the Government has already made
an allocation of Rs 667.50 crore for the 10th Plan, once
again reflecting the adhocism.
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What is most
disconcerting is the non-utilisation of the funds
sanctioned by the Government. Under the Ninth Plan, the
Government approved Rs 249.60 crore. By November 2001, a
total of Rs 167.42 crore, that is, about 41.84 crore per
year was incurred. It remains to be seen whether the
remaining Rs 82.18 crore, which is almost double than
what was spent per annum for the last four years have
been utilised by 2002 as the 10th Plan comes into force
in 2003. Similarly, although, Rs 100.76 crore was
sanctioned for eradication of child labour under the
Eighth Five Year Plan period, only Rs 74.71 crore, which
is less than 75 per cent, were utilised.
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No poverty
eradication programmes have been included to eradicate
child labour under the 10th Plan either. In a reply to
Parliament on April 7, 2003, Minister of State for
Labour Vijay Goel outlined the programmes to eliminate
child labour under the 10th Plan. The plan adds nothing
new except expanding the coverage of National Child
Labour Projects from 100 to 150 child labour endemic
districts and linking child labour efforts with the HRD
Ministry's Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. Without specific
programmes for eradication of poverty, the 10th Plan is
unlikely to significantly contribute to the elimination
of child labour in India.
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The 1986 Child
Labour Act is the main legal instrument to combat the
practice. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of
the Child, in its concluding observations on India in
January 2000, expressed concerns over the large number
of children involved in child labour, including bonded
labour, especially in the informal sector, household
enterprises, as domestic servants, and in agriculture.
The Committee also expressed concern that minimum age
standards for employment are rarely enforced and
appropriate penalties and sanctions are not imposed to
ensure that employers comply with the law.
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The Child Labour Act
does not prohibit employment of children as domestic
servants. Although, the Government issued a notification
in October 1999, prohibiting Gover-nment servants from
employing children below the age of 14 years for any
kind of work, Government servants continue to violate
the order. On September 24, 2003, the NHRC took suo motu
cognisance of child labourers employed by a senior
Indian Administrative Service officer in Andhra Pradesh.
The Banjara Hills Police of Hyderabad registered a
criminal case against a 10-year-old boy, who was
employed as a servant at a senior IAS officer's
residence, for alleged attempt to poison him. However,
it did not register a case against the official for
breach of the Child Labour Act.
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According to the
Government statistics presented before Parliament, in
2002; 88,887 inspections were carried out during which
3,528 violations of the provisions of the Child Labour
Act were detected. The Government also stated that
during 2000-01 and 2001-02, 24,985 inspections were
carried out and prosecutions launched in 99 cases
resulted in 13 convictions. The lack of enforcement of
the Child Labour Act, 1986, as reflected from the low
rate of conviction and the lack of comprehensive
programmes for eradication of poverty and proper
rehabilitation of the rescued child labourers have been
contributing factors for increasing the number of child
labourers in India.
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