NCPCR issues guidelines for protection of child rights

Giving direction to end child labour, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has asked the state government to take immediate steps towards the same and work for rehabilitation of rescued children.

NCPCR also asked to generate a Code of Conduct for the employees of all public sector institutions, government funded institutions and governments offices for not engaging children as domestic workers or encourage child labour in any form at their work places.

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Shanta Sinha, Chairman NCPCR has asked state machinery to eradicate child labour; initiatives must be taken up as a drive with the help of mobile courts and strict action against those who continue employing children.

NCPCR believes that it is possible to abolish child labour if a wholehearted effort is made in this direction, both by the government and citizens, as there are many successful stories to substantiate where initiatives of the government as well as the NGOs in various states and regions in India have helped downsizing child labour. Even parents who were reluctant to send their children to school have shown satisfaction with their children getting education.

The commission stressed for urgent response to this matter by providing children protection against exploitations and right to education.

Guidelines issued to state to abolish child labors-

• The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation Act) 1986 prohibits child labour in 15 occupations and 57 processes. Strict action to be taken against the employer who violets the rule.

• The Juvenile Justice Act 2006, welfare legislation, has been enacted to provide for care, protection development and rehabilitation of neglected, delinquent children and includes within its purview, child labourers. Also a ‘Child’ is defined as “a person who has not completed eighteenth years of age,” hence it gives protection, care and cover to all children upto the age of 18 years as against the Child Labour Act which prohibits employment of children only up to 14 years of age.

• The Bonded Labour System Abolition Act, 1976 must be used as an instrument to book cases against employers of children.

• In addition, the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 can be used to prosecute the principal employer in cases where the engagement of child labour has been done through a contractor.

The acts cover child labour including those who work under agriculture and other activities and must be used individually and / or collectively, by the government and other stakeholders to take firm action against the employers concerned.

The commission hailed Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA), National Child Labour Project (NCLP) and the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) to take up responsibilities to rehabilitate children by making education available, counselling and providing children comfort and other health facilities.

It stress on having a mass movement against child labour by involving media, all government officials, NGOs, teachers and trade unions, political parties, corporate sector , college students and all others in systematic fashion is necessary.

But the goal of child labour free world depends if the concerned department including labour, education, women and child, revenue and health, work in harmony. Also there should be a better coordination at national, state, district and block/ward levels with guidelines and protocols for the rescue, repatriation and rehabilitation of child labourers.