Child labour in India

Child labour in India and rest of the world, during 2003 in 10–18 age group,[1] with an estimated 11%, is in green with 10–20% incidence levels, along with countries in red (30%–40%) and brown and black (40%–100%), World Bank World Development Indicators 2005.

A significant proportion of children in India are engaged in child labour. In 2011, the national census of India found that the total number of child labourers, aged [5–14], to be at 10.12 million, out of the total of 259.64 million children in that age group.[2] The child labour problem is not unique to India; worldwide, about 217 million children work, many full-time.[3]

As per the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, amended in 2016 ("CLPR Act"), a "Child" is defined as any person below the age of 14, and the CLPR Act prohibits employment of a Child in any employment, including as a domestic help; to do otherwise is a criminal offence. Conversely, children between the ages of 14 and 18 are defined as "Adolescent" and are allowed to be employed except in mining, flammable substance- and explosives-related work, and other hazardous processes, per the Factories Act of 1948.[4] In 2001, an estimated 1% of all child workers, or about 1,20,000 children in India were in a hazardous job.[5] Notably, the Constitution of India prohibits child labour in hazardous industries (but not in non-hazardous industries) as a Fundamental Right under Article 24.[6] UNICEF estimates that India with its larger population, has the highest number of labourers in the world under 14 years of age, while sub-Saharan African countries have the highest percentage of children who are deployed as child labourers.[7][8][9] The International Labour Organization estimates that agriculture, at 60 percent, is the largest employer of child labour in the world,[10] while the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimates 70% of child labour is deployed in agriculture and related activities.[11] Outside of agriculture, child labour is observed in almost all informal sectors of the Indian economy.[12][13][14]

Companies including Gap,[15] Primark,[16] and Monsanto[17] have been criticised for child labour in their products. The companies claim they have strict policies against selling products made by underage children for their own profit, but there are many links in a supply chain making it difficult to oversee them all.[17] In 2011, after three years of Primark's effort, the BBC acknowledged that its award-winning investigative journalism report of Indian child labour use by Primark was a fake. The BBC apologised to Primark, to Indian suppliers and all its viewers.[18][19] Another company that has come under much scrutiny was Nike. Nike was under pressure to speak up about alleged sweatshops that harbored children that the company was exploiting to make their sneakers. Since then Nike has come out with a separate web page that specifically points out where they get their products from and where their products are manufactured.

In December 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor issued a List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor and India figured among 74 countries where a significant incidence of critical working conditions has been observed. Unlike any other country,[clarification needed] 23 goods were attributed to India, the majority of which are produced by child labour in the manufacturing sector.

In addition to the constitutional prohibition of hazardous child labour, various laws in India, such as the Juvenile Justice (care and protection) of Children Act-2000, and the Child Labour (Prohibition and Abolition) Act 1986 provide a basis in law to identify, prosecute and stop child labour in India.[20]

  1. ^ Table 2.8, WDI 2005, The World Bank
  2. ^ Age Data C13 Table (India/States/UTs ), Final Population - 2011 Census of India
  3. ^ "Child Labour - ILO". ILO, United Nations. 2011.
  4. ^ "India: Child Labour (Prohibition And Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 Of India".
  5. ^ "Children and Work (Annual Report 2009)" (PDF). Census 2001. 2008. p. 108.
  6. ^ "Constitution of India". Vakilno1.com. Government of India.
  7. ^ "India- The big picture". UNICEF. Archived from the original on 7 September 2019. Retrieved 19 October 2009.
  8. ^ "THE STATE OF THE WORLD'S CHILDREN - 2011" (PDF). UNICEF. 2012.
  9. ^ Madslien, Jorn (4 February 2004). "ILO: 'Child labour prevents is ver". BBC News. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  10. ^ "Facts on Child Labor - 2010" (PDF). ILO, Geneva. 2011.
  11. ^ "Agriculture accounts for 70 percent of child labour worldwide". FAO, United Nations. 2006. Archived from the original on 14 November 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  12. ^ "Child Labour". Labour.nic.in. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  13. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 29 January 2012. Retrieved 9 February 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. ^ Burra, Neera. "Child labour in rural areas with a special focus on migration, agriculture, mining and brick kilns" (PDF). National Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 January 2009. Retrieved 19 October 2009.
  15. ^ "Gap Under Fire: Reports Allege Child Labor". ABC News. Retrieved 22 October 2009.
  16. ^ Hawkes, Steve (17 June 2008). "Primark drops firms using child labour". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 12 June 2011. Retrieved 22 October 2009.
  17. ^ a b Bahree, Megha (3 October 2008). "Child Labor". Forbes. Retrieved 22 October 2009.
  18. ^ Burrell, Ian; Hickman, Martin (17 June 2011). "BBC crisis over 'fake' sweatshop scene in Primark documentary". The Independent. London.
  19. ^ "Primark and BBC Panorama: the true story". Primark. 2012. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012.
  20. ^ "National Legislation and Policies Against Child in India". International Labour Organization - an Agency of the United Nations, Geneva. 2011. Archived from the original on 9 August 2012. Retrieved 13 July 2012.