Commission seeks ban on child labour in farm sector

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New Delhi, Aug 8: Concerned over the exploitation of children as labourers in the agriculture sector, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (Ncpcr) has sought a ban on their employment in the sector and changes in the legislations to prevent child labour in the country.

Stating that there are over 80 million children in the country in the age group of 14-18 years and 70% of them are illiterate, living in vulnerable conditions, Chairperson Ncpcr Shanta Sinha said that majority of the children are found working in the fields or in tea-stalls when they should have been in school. She said that unless the government banned use of children in agricultural activities or declares it as hazardous activity, it would not be possible to prohibit child labour.

As per the recommendations of the Child Labour Technical Advisory Committee headed by the director-general of Indian Council of Medical Research, the ministry of labour and employment had recently added nine more processes to the list of hazardous occupations and processes where children cannot be employed.

With the expansion of the list to cover processes involving excessive heat and cold, mechanised fishing, timber handling and loading, food processing, beverages industry, diving and mechanical lumbering – the use of child labour is absolutely prohibited in 15 occupations and 66 processes now.

Seeking changes in the Child Labour Act, the Ncpcr chief also pressed for the raising the age limit banning child labour from 14 to 18 years in line with the UN convention for rights of child (UNCRC), a demand that has also been made by the ministry for women and child development (MoWCD) and several non-government organisations (NGOs) on earlier occasions.

However, the labour ministry is of the view that no changes in the age limit are needed because the law in its present form bans the use of children up to the age of 18 years in hazardous processes and occupations. It has also pointed to the fact that socio-economic conditions in the country are much different from those in the US and the EU. India already has too many working poor and the country is yet to ensure education for all children up to the age of 14 years.