Child Labour

Child Labour

Introduction:

            Child labour refers to the employment of children in any work that deprives their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular school and that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful. This practice is considered exploitative by many international Organization.

Causes of child labour:

1. Factors Related to family:

·         Illitracy of  parents.

·         No permanent dwelling Place.

·         Elder children have to take care of the younger sibilings.

·         Tendency of uncivilized parents who consider children’s income important than their future.

·         Childerns are forced to work to pay home loan and debits taken by their parents from employs.

2. Factors related to economic conditions of the family

·                     Most  of the young children take some odd jobs to augment the income of the           

poverty –ridden Family

·                     For those parent who are not able to provide one square meal a day to the

children ,Sending them to school is luxury.

·                     Old age of ill heath parents.

3. Factors Related to social environment in family

·                     Most parents in the society think that girls need not to be educated.

·                     Many parents consider that children should pick up the family occupation or trade

and perpetuate the honour  and dinity of the family.

·                     Forcing the girl children to help in the household chorus of close relatives and

others.

·                     Children who run away from their home end up as food servers or table cleaner

in town restaurtants

4. Education –Related  Factors:

·                  Lack of aptitude of children in education.

·                  Teachers high- handedness and corporal punishment given in schools Frighten the

children

·                  Education remain uninteresting for children.

Types of child Labours:

                        Unicef has classified child work into 3 categories.

         i )  Within the Family: Eg: Domestic, house hold task.

         ii)  Within the family but out side the home : Eg Agricultural  works

        iii)  Outside the family: Eg apprentice ship, prostitution 

 This may be

  1. Migrant child labour         –`   Migrating from their native place

  2. Bonded child labour         -     childern are pledged by their parents/guardians to

      employment   in debts or payments.

              3. Invisible child labour        -     children in the unorganized or and informal sectors

                                                                  .

  Consequences of Child Labour:   

·         Inhuman Practice. The mental growth of children is checked.

·         Less time up opportunity of children to go to school. They are deprived from education.

·         Obstruct individual growth. The standard of living of people remain low

.     Destroy children’s, childhood,

·         Ultimately, child labour affects the growth of country as children are the pillars of economy

·         Girls are Sexually harassed.

·         Though they work for more than 8 hours a day like adult labours, they are not paid wages on par with time.

·         Children may supposed to work in unhygienic conditions. this affect their health.

·         Female child labour become prey for sex torture and some of become unwed mothers.

·         Child labours become addicted to intoxicants Like alcohol, opium smoking etc due to bad companionship.

·         Children are neither educated nor vocationally trained and their productivity very low

Steps taken by Government to check the child labour and promote child welfare in India:

i)          In 1988, the government of India launched the National child labour Project. The scheme involves establishment of special school for child labour who are withdrawn from work;

ii)         These special school provide formal and informal eduction along with vocational training, and also provide a mutual stipend.

iii)        Supplementary nutrition and health care also provided to such children. Mid- day  meals are provided to all students on government school.

iv)        Earlier there was no seperate budgetary provision for any health component to take care of the health related aspects of the children. In revised scheme an amount of honorarium (Rs.5,000 per month for one doctor to put in place an in institutionalized mechanism for regular and periodical effective health care of children by a doctor.

v)         A highly powerful body, The National Authority for the Elimination of Child Labour (NAECL) was established on September 26 1994, headed by the Union Minister of labour in the government of India These are credible efforts being made at the administrative level to eliminate the problem of child labour.

vi)        There are many Voluntary organizations working for the Resume and Rehabitation of child labour in India.

vii)       Encouraging alternate schools and Non Formal Education the scheme of Sarva Siksha Abiyan should be vigorously implemented.

viii)      June 12^th is observed every year as the Child labour Education Day. That day special programmes like processions, organising human chain cycle  procession, etc, could be organised to increase Public awareness about child labour. On November 14^th (Children’s day) is observed as part of it child – labour awarness programmes could be undertaken.

Conclusion:

            Education for all children  is the key that can bring about a fundamental change and help to end the problem permanently. A collective public governmental effort on various fronts will eventually lead to the complete eradication of child labour menance from India.

Bibliography:

                        Periannan, G. (2011). Childhood and growing

                                    Chennai : AMSA Pathipagam.

Oswalt, A. (2016). Children and Media issues. Retrived

From WWW. mentalhelp.com.

Berk, L.E. (2009). Child development

            USA: PHI learning PVT. Ltd.