Essay on “Child labour in India” Complete Essay for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

Child labour in India

Child labour in India is both rural and urban in nature. Approximately 90% of rural children work in agriculture and allied activities while the situation is no different in urban areas.  This does not imply that the law encourages child labour.  IN fact, our Constitution has made provisions to safeguard the rights of children by way of making their education compulsory, prohibiting their employment in factories and forced labour prohibition. 

            The problem of child labour is getting more and more extensive every year.  The reasons are many.   The economic situation of the family, unemployment, urbanization, globalization and cultural pressures are some of these reasons.

What is Child Labour?

            Apparently, child labour includes the employment of children but it entails several other dimensions which make it critical.  Economic pressures coupled with the increasing trend to hire children in order to save production costs, and unemployment in families are a few of the various factors responsible for increasing child labour in India.

            Earlier, the participation of children in economic activities was just a matter of play; they were not given tough and firing tasks.  However, industrialization has made them a commodity… Poor families give away their children’s towels to families which in turn use them as domestic labour.  Sometimes these helpless children work as mortgaged commodities until the debt taken by their fathers is received.

Responsible Factors for Child Labour

            The Problems of child labour are directly linked to education and poverty.  Unfortunately, the poverty alleviation programmes in most countries like India do not see the tracheotomy between these three, the vision of narrow.  They do not analyze and link them with the broader context of economic or environment in families, poverty-related policies, and processes of liberalization, privatization and globalization.  The exorbitant cost of education keeps many out of the school, thus increasing child labour.  There is legal ambiguity in the constitution of provisions of Articles 24 and 25, which can be deliberately or inadvertently misused, which tell about hazardous work.  This gives a mute approval towards non-hazardous work.

Legal Provision and Child Labour

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has been playing a major role in

The Process of gradual elimination of child labour and protecting them from industrial exploitation. India too has accepted the convention on the Rights of the Child included in the General Assembly on November 20, 1989.  The Indian Constitution also provides for the development of the children n, i.e., Article 45 mandates the state shall endeavour to provide free and compulsory education for all children until they complete 14 years of age.  But the real contradiction lies in the provision of Article 24 and 45. Article 24 prohibits child labour, thus making it a qualified and not total prohibition.

Ways to Tackle the Problem

            Every problem has some solution, so doe’s child labour.  Thus, the only need is to sit down, realize and analyze the various aspects thereby converging all these into some sort of viable strategy or strategies.  Here can be some practical ways:

            Raising Awareness:-Raising awareness among children and parents can go miles in tackling child labour.  A well-thought strategy should be implemented to let parents know the initial needs of childhood development, government schemes of free education, health, etc. Women should be specially treated and educated because they can better realize their children’s needs.

Vocational Training

            Vocational training is frequently popular among families which are susceptible to resort to child labour.  While non-formal education programmes can teach children skills that will offer immediate economic options, as well as psycho-social support, the most formal vocational programmes, require close adult supervision.  

Need for Rehabilitation Programmes

            Child labourers undergo various types of ill-treatment-hidden or apparent.  All this may be very traumatizing for them.   Girls bear a special burden of poverty.  Giving quality education to them is the first step.  The needs and lifestyles of such children must be studied properly and then an awareness campaign should be started. 

            Practically, child labour is indeed a difficult problem to address. This is so because we differ in approach and our thinking.  While it suits us to discuss it with ease, in our drawing-room, we find it fine to employ a child, as our domestic help or something else.  This is what we will have to change, i.e. our mindset.  Child labour should be denounced in all forms and manifestations.  This will demand more efforts from all sections of the society together with legislature, judiciary and execution.  Modern-day social activities will, especially, have to work towards bringing a change in the socio-economic setup to help children in getting educated.