According to the Indian census of 1991, there are 11.28 million working children under the age of fourteen years in India. Over 85% of this child labor is in the country's rural areas, working in agricultural activities such as fanning, livestock rearing, forestry and fisheries. This labor is outside the formal sector, and outside industry. Moreover, nine out of ten working children work within a family setting. Working in family-based occupations, these children also develop skills in certain traditional crafts, thus augmenting the human capital formation of India's developing economy.
India has all along followed a proactive policy in the matter of tackling the problem of child labor. India has always stood for constitutional, statutory and development measures required to eliminate child labor. The Indian Constitution has consciously incorporated provisions to secure compulsory universal elementary education as well as labor protection for children. Labor Commissions in India have gone into the problems of child labor and have made extensive recommendations.
In India, the post-independence era has seen an unequivocal commitment of the government to the cause of children through constitutional provisions, legislation, policies and programs. The Constitution of India in Article 39 of the Directive Principles of State Policy pledges that "the State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing ... that the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused, and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age or strength, that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner, and in conditions of freedom and dignity, and that childhood and youth are protected against exploitation, and against moral and material abandonment."
As a follow-up of this commitment, and being a party to the UN Declaration on the Rights of the Child 1959, India adopted the National Policy on Children in 1974. The policy reaffirmed the constitutional provisions and stated that "it shall be the policy of the State to provide adequate services to children, both before and after birth and through the period of growth to ensure their full physical, mental and social development. The State shall progressively increase the scope of such services so that within a reasonable time all children in the country enjoy optimum conditions for their balanced growth."
India has also ratified on December 2, 1992, the Convention on the Rights of the Child which came into force in 1990. This ratification implies that India will ensure wide awareness about issues relating to children among government agencies, implementing agencies, the media, the judiciary, the public and children themselves. The Government's endeavor is to meet the goals of the Convention and to amend all legislation, policies and schemes to meet the standards set in the Convention.
India is also a signatory to the World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children. In pursuance of the commitment made at the World Summit, the Department of Women and Child Development under the Ministry of Human Resource Development has formulated a National Plan of Action for Children. Most of the recommendations of the World Summit Action Plan are reflected in India's National Plan of Action.
India's policy on child labor has evolved over the years against this backdrop and its present regime of laws relating to child labor has a pragmatic foundation, consistent with the International Labor Conference resolution of 1979. This ILO resolution calls for a combination of prohibitory measures and measures for humanizing child labor, wherever such labor cannot be eliminated altogether in the short turn. It should also be mentioned that India is second to none in its commitment to and in the upholding of the core international labor standards such as freedom of association, collective bargaining, non-discrimination, etc. India is signatory to a record 36 ILO labor conventions.
The Child Labor (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986 of India prohibits the employment of children below the age of 14 in factories, mines and in other forms of hazardous employment, and regulates the working conditions of children in other employment. India has announced a National Policy of Child Labor as early as 1987, and was probably the first among the developing countries to have such a progressive policy. Through a notification dated May 26, 1993, the working conditions of children have been regulated in all employment not prohibited under the Child Labor (Prohibition and Regulation) Act. Further, following up on a preliminary notification issued on October 5, 1993, the government has also prohibited employment of children in occupations such as abattoirs/slaughter houses, printing, cashew de-scaling and processing, and soldering.
The announcement by the Prime Minister on India's Independence Day in 1994 that child labor would be abolished in hazardous occupations by the year 2000, reflects a national consensus and commitment. After this declaration, several far-reaching initiatives have been taken by the Government to effectively tackle the problem.
With the setting up of the National Authority for the Elimination of Child Labor (NAECL) under the Chairmanship of the Labor Minister, Government of India, a convergence of services and schemes for eliminating child labor is being achieved. The NAECL, comprising representatives from the Central Ministries, meets the need for an umbrella organization to coordinate the efforts of the different arms of the Government for the progressive elimination of child labor.
The child labor program in India is national in character and involves the Government of India,, the governments of the States and the Union Territories of India, as well as such tripartite fora as the Indian Labour Conference and the Standing Labour Committee. A massive national and regional media campaign has been launched to sensitize society against child labor. Funds have been allocated to districts identified as child-labor endemic for surveys to identify child labor, and for awareness generation programs among employers, parents and the working children themselves.
This paper covers the significant aspects of India's constitutional and legislative provisions relating to child labor, the enforcement of these provisions, and programs being undertaken nation-wide to eliminate child labor.
India's first act on the subject was the enactment of the Children (Pledging of Labor) Act of February 1933. This was followed by the Employment of Children Act in 1938. Subsequently, twelve additional legislations were passed that progressively extended legal protection to children. Provisions relating to child labor under various enactment such as the Factories Act, the Mines Act, the Plantation Labor Act etc. have concentrated on aspects such as reducing working hours, increasing minimum wage and prohibiting employment of children in occupations and processes detrimental to their health and development.
The Child Labor (Prohibition & Regulation) Act 1986 of India was the culmination of efforts and ideas that emerged from the deliberations and recommendations of various committees on child labor. Significant among them are the National Commission on Labour (1966-69), Gurupadaswamy Committee on Child Labour (1979), and the Sanat Mehta Committee (1984).
The Act aims to prohibit the entry of children into hazardous occupations and to regulate the services of children in non-hazardous occupations. The Act,, in particular,
- bans the employment of children, i.e. those who have not completed their 14th year, in specified occupations and processes (listed in the Schedule to the Act, attached at Annexure I);
- lays down a procedure to make additions to the schedule of banned occupations or processes;
- regulates the working conditions of children in occupations where they are not prohibited from working;
- lays down penalties for employment of children in violation of the provisions of this Act,, and other Acts which forbid the employment of children;
- brings uniformity in the definition of the "Child" in related laws.
