CHILD LABOUR

INTRODUCTION

Child labour is the practise of having children engages in

economic activity, on part- or full-time basis. The practise
deprives children of their childhood, and is harmful to their
physical and mental development. The child labour problem
is not unique to India; worldwide about 217 million children
work, many full-time.
Child labour refers to the employment of children in any
work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with
their ability to attend regular school, and that is mentally,
physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful.

CAUSES OF CHILD LABOUR : Primary causes:

International Labour Organisation (ILO) suggests poverty is

the greatest single cause behind child labour. For
impoverished households, income from a child's work is
usually crucial for his or her own survival or for that of the
household.

Lack of meaningful alternatives, such as affordable schools

and quality education, according to ILO, is another major
factor driving children to harmful labour. Children work
because they have nothing better to do.

CAUSES OF CHILD LABOUR : Cultural causes: In European history when child labour was common, as well as
in contemporary child labour of modern world, certain cultural
beliefs have rationalised child labour and thereby encouraged
it. Some view that work is good for the character-building and
skill development of children.
Child labour then is a means to learn and practice that trade
from a very early age. Similarly, in many cultures the
education of girls is less valued or girls are simply not
expected to need formal schooling, and these girls pushed into
child labour such as providing domestic services.

CAUSES OF CHILD LABOUR : Macroeconomic causes: Biggeri and Mehrotra have studied the macroeconomic factors
that encourage child labour .They suggest that the causes for
child labour include both the demand and the supply side.
Macroeconomic causes encouraged widespread child labour
across the world, over most of human history.
Other scholars too suggest that inflexible labour market, size of
informal economy, inability of industries to scale up and lack of
modern manufacturing technologies are major macroeconomic
factors affecting demand and acceptability of child labour.

Where is it a Problem?
Child Labour is often perceived as a problem faced not only by
developing countries but by the developed countries also.
While the vast majority of children engaged in child labour are
indeed working in developing countries, it exists in
industrialised and transition countries as well.
The scale and depth of the problem is most critical in
developing countries. There are127.3 million children working
in Asia and the Pacific, constituting 16% of the child
population and 60% of existing child workers worldwide. SubSaharan Africa follows with 48 million child labourers, 29% of
its child population.

Where is it a Problem?
Child labour and its problems are intimately related to the
extreme poverty.
These children as such contribute to the pool income of the
family to full fill their needs. This is the story of child labour in
all the poor developing and underdeveloped countries of Africa
a Asia including India. Even after sixty-nine years of
independence our country has not been able to afford any relief
to the poor.

Strategies of ILO : Action to combat child labour by the organisation is rooted in

the international labour standards of the ILO (primarily
Conventions Nos 138 and 182), strengthened by the framework
provided by the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and
Right at Work.
The ILOs International programme on the Elimination of Child
Labour (IPEC) was founded in 1992. The number and range of
IPECs partners has also expanded over the years, and now
includes government agencies, employers and workers
organisations, private business ,community-based organisations,
NGOs, the media, parliamentarians, the judiciary, religious
groups and, of course, children and their families.

Strategies of ILO : Almost 150 NGOs across the world have been working with
IPEC through Action Programmes. It is the biggest single
operational programme of the ILO.
IPECs approach includes: determining the nature and extent of
child labour; devising national policies and protective
legislation; setting up mechanisms to provide in-country
ownership and operation of national programmes of action; and
creating awareness in communities and workplace.

Initiatives against child labour in India : In 1979, the Indian government formed the Gurupadswamy
Committee to find about child labour and means to tackle it. The
Child Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act, was enacted based
on the recommendations of the committee in 1986.
A National Policy on Child Labour was formulated in 1987 to
focus on rehabilitating children working in hazardous
occupations.
Many NGOs like Bachpan Bachao Andolan, Child Fund, CARE
India, Talaash Association, Child Rights and You, Global march
against child labour, RIDE India, Child line etc. have been
working to eradicate child labour in India.

Laws enacted to protect the rights of children: In India there are many Laws enacted to protect the
rights of children which are as follows:
1. The Child Labour Act, 1986.
2. The Factories Act, 1948
3. The Mines Act, 1952

Constitutional provisions:

Article 24 provides: strictly prohibits children to work in

hazardous environment.
Article 21, 45 gives the right to education to all the children
below the age of 14years.
Article 39 declares the duty of the State to provide the children
a free and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in
conditions of freedom and dignity.