New Delhi : India has 10.1 million child labourers in the 5-14 age group, the most in the world, a study revealed here Wednesday.
“India continues to host the largest number of child labourers in the world with more than half of Delhi’s working children forced to work more than eight hours a day without a single day’s rest,” said the report released by NGO Child Rights and You (CRY) in collaboration with Philips.
“Over 51 percent of the employers employ children in the age group of 5-14 years when they should be in school. The survey found 47 percent employers are aware of the law, but that doesn’t deter them from employing children,” said the report that was released at the end of CRY’s “Click Rights Open Your Eyes” campaign, an initiative to sensitise citizens about child labour.
The report said child labour is prominent (75 percent) in tea stalls, “dhabas” or small shops as there is complete lack of regulation of working conditions in this segment.
“Though 84 percent employers find it important for child labourers to attend school and attain education, they continue to employ them,” said the report.
“This is a vicious cycle where employers themselves are illiterate and have at some point been child labourers; the lack of education forces them into the unorganised sector which is unregulated and exploitative,” Soha Moitra, Regional Director-North, CRY, said at the release of the report.
“The persistence of this form of exploitation is indicative of a complete failure of society — there is no regulation and no fear of punitive action as laws remain good on paper but are rarely enforced.”