On the World Day against Child Labour, the trade unions convened a meeting here to voice their concerns on the rising number of child labour and urged the State and Central Governments for appropriate measures to address the issue.
Indian National Building Construction and Wood Workers Federation (INBCWWF) president and former MP Dr Rama Chandra Khuntia who chaired the meeting, called for collective efforts and actions by key stakeholders including trade unions and community at large.
“The theme for this year’s World Day Against Child Labour is ‘Act now: End child labour’ (ILO), which strongly reflects an urgency of purpose and sustained actions to eradicate the problem of child labour. We as trade unions have to ensure the rights of workers and their families including children,” he said. Children have been the worst hit in the ongoing Covid-19 crisis as the in-person schooling has been replaced by online platforms and other technology driven tools without according attention to accessibility, resources and infrastructure availability for all. Technology could be a boon only to those who have the access and who could afford it, otherwise it could further alienate and marginalise weaker sections of the society, who lack the means, resources and also knowledge to use it, the speakers said.
The health pandemic has compounded the problems of workers and their families as workers have lost jobs, faced wage cuts and lack socialm security coverage. Also, in many cases, deaths of family bread earners have left children in a much worse-off situation and vulnerable to exploitation. Without urgent mitigation measures by the State and Central Governments, the Covid-19 crisis is likely to push thousands of children into child labour across districts, they added.