3 August 2006
India Bans Child Labor
Posted by Jeremy under: Business; Politics; World News .
A step in the right direction…
India has passed a law banning child labor and I think that’s great news.
The new legislation bans children under the age of 14 from working as domestic servants or at hotels, tea shops, restaurants and resorts.
The labour ministry said the ban would come into effect Oct. 10 and those violating it could face a jail term of up to two years and a maximum fine of 20,000 rupees ($484 Canadian).
My understanding is that enforcement is going to be difficult at the beginning, but even if it is, getting the laws in place is an important first step.
2 Comments so far...
Sandhya
Says:
12 September 2006 at 9:22 pm.
It is true that India has banned Child labour. But that is only half the point. The law has been there since a long time. But it was banned only in a few industries and processes.
The recent notification which the article above talks of is about banning child labour in homes and in hotels/restuarants etc. which were no included earlier. This notification is significant because it is the first time that the law touches the unorganised sector.
The implementation of the law is the most important step after the law comes into effect from October 10th 2006. Equally importanat is the awareness among the people that child labour at homes and at restuarants is illegal. Culturally, child labour is accepted as a necessary evil. Hence the awareness of the public is the very important.
I work for an organisation called Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save the Childhood Movement) which works on child labour and education issues. We are planning a month long campaign to raise awareness among the public about the law and about the necessity of education for all. The campaign is planned for Delhi and a few other states.
This mail is a small way to spread the word against child labour on the Internet. Kindly pass this message to as many people as possible. For more information about the campaign, please visit http://www.bba.org.in. Soon, campaign downloadables would also be available there. Mails about the campaign are also welcome at bba.edu@gmail.com or sandhyazone@gmail.com
Sandhya
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