Good initial steps to revamp the child labour law
It can be argued that the Government's amendments to the Child labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, fall short of the ideal to altogether ban child labour in the country. Perhaps this is so, because, while the amendments ban the employment of children below the age of 14 years, they offer exemptions in the case of family-run enterprises — so long as the child is engaged after school hours. Child rights activists have been calling for a complete ban on child labour. It does not appear to be the Government's intention to provide loopholes to allow for the continuation of child labour. Indeed, the amendments, insofar as they are the first steps, demonstrate its desire to firmly stamp out the social ill. However, the Government could not have ignored ground realities.
There are several family-owned businesses where children under 14 years of age are put to work — either to help them gain experience before they join the enterprise in a full-fledged capacity, or because it makes economical sense for the family to have its own member as a productive hand. None of these realities can be wished away; indeed there is nothing wrong per se in such thinking, so long as the child does not have to sacrifice his or her school education. Then there is the other reality: Many poor families cannot afford education for their children, or feel that it makes sense for them to have an extra earning member than to spend money on educating the child.
Of course, this cannot be condoned. Basic education cannot be sacrificed at the altar of employment. Moreover, there are enough state-run schools offering free education to the needy, and so the argument of lack of money does not hold good. Still, the situation exists on the ground, and unless stakeholders involved — Governments, non-Government organisations, parents and teachers — come together to tackle it, very little progress will be made. If everybody puts their heads together, perhaps the day will come earlier than hoped for, when a total ban on child labour can become a reality and the likes of Nobel laureate Kailash Sathyarthi, who has called for a comprehensive ban, will have something to celebrate.
Political parties that are in the opposition ranks must not use the issue to score points over the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA Government, by accusing the latter of ‘diluting' the Act. The Congress especially should remember the practical difficulties that a complete ban can run into. It had been in power for a decade until May 2014 and could do very little to meet the — at times impractical — demands of the child rights lobby in this regard. Meanwhile, let us at least be happy that one of the amendments bars children from working in hazardous sectors such as mining, and another enhances the quantum of punishment for employers who flout the law. In time to come, the provisions can be made more stringent and the scope of exemptions reduced.