While most children are still getting ready for school, many their age are already at work — wiping tables at tea stalls, running errands at motor garages, or waiting at traffic junctions to sell pens and tissue packets. Their day begins at dawn and ends long after dark.
Child labour in Bhopal is far from a thing of the past. It has simply moved out of the shadows. From factories and back-alley workshops, it has spilled onto pavements, intersections and shopfronts — becoming part of the city’s daily life.
Historically, child labour here has deep roots. In the final years of Nawab Hamidullah Khan’s rule — before Bhopal joined the Indian Union — children worked in textile units and artisanal centres. Zari factories and weaving sheds often relied on young labourers to perform monotonous tasks for low wages. Craftsmanship thrived, but the children behind it were rarely acknowledged or protected.
This reality was documented by Professor Syed Ashfaq Ali in The Economic Development of Bhopal. A respected educationist and city historian, Ali served as principal of Saifia College between 1960 and 1978.
Today, the settings have changed. Children are found working at roadside dhabas, construction sites, kirana shops, and in informal workshops where safety measures are non-existent. Many face long hours, physical strain and constant supervision — all for wages that barely help their families survive.
What’s more visible now is the rise of children at traffic lights and market areas. These are not always independent efforts. Many are part of organised networks that assign children to specific spots, coach them on how to approach passersby, and shuffle them between high-footfall zones.
“These kids aren’t acting alone,” said an auto-rickshaw driver near Imami Gate. “They’re dropped off, watched, and often moved if they earn well. I see the same faces night after night.”
Gaurav, a social worker with Manthan, an NGO promoting education, says children are targeted because they’re compliant. “They don’t question wages. Once they start earning, returning to school becomes unlikely. Often, families are convinced by handlers that this will ease poverty.”
Selling newspapers is common but harder to categorise as exploitative. “They’re paid in cash by middlemen — there’s no record,” Manthan said.
Children are frequently shifted — from 10 Number Market to Chowk Bazaar, MP Nagar to Jumerati — and pushed to meet daily targets. In affluent areas like VIP Road, they hover outside restaurants during dinner hours, hoping for sympathy.
Though the Child Labour Act prohibits most of these practices, enforcement remains weak. Rescued children are often released without follow-up, only to return the same evening.
Bhopal lacks active shelter homes or a long-term policy for rehabilitation. For these children, work doesn’t begin at 18 — it begins at sunrise.