Govt plans count of child workers

The Ministry of Labour and Employment has proposed an all-India survey of child workers in an attempt to work out ways to mitigate their lot.

"The government proposes to conduct a survey to assess the number of child workers and is taking all steps to complete it as early as possible," said Minister of State for Labour and Employment Oscar Fernandes.

At present, the ministry refers to the 2001 census, according to which 12.5 million children (in the age group of 5-14 years) out of a total child population of 252 million, work.

With the number of children involved in hazardous activities estimated at 1.2 million, the ministry plans to assess the various aspects of child labour in the country.

"We want to get the exact details of all the working children so that welfare programmes for them can be executed effectively. The survey would be sector (industry) specific and identify each child," Fernandes told Business Standard.

Officials said the processes for the survey would be finalised soon. "The survey is needed as the 2001 census provides data which is six years old. This survey will collect sector-specific data at village/town levels," said a ministry official. 
 

HOW STATES STACK UP
Number of child workers, statewise (in million)
Uttar Pradesh	1.92
Andhra Pradesh	1.36
Rajasthan	1.26
Bihar	1.1
Madhya Pradesh	1.06
West Bengal	0.85
Tamil Nadu	0.418
Jharkhand	0.407
Orissa	0.377
Chhattisgarh	0.364
Source: Ministry of Labour & Employment  Based on 2001 census

On steps taken to tackle child labour, Fernandes said the National Child Labour Projects (NCLP) Scheme, for the rehabilitation of child workers, is being implemented in 20 states

Under the scheme, children withdrawn from work are admitted to special schools and provided education, nutrition, stipend, vocational training and healthcare. After this, the children are put into mainstream schools. According to the ministry, around 330,000 children withdrawn from work are enrolled in these special schools. So far, 390,000 children have joined the formal education system, said Fernandes.

The ministry had earlier sought the help of various ministries for implementing the provisions of the Child Labour (prohibition and regulation) Act, 1986, which now includes domestic labour and children working in eatries.

"We are receiving a good response from the ministries to rehabilitate these children and to provide support to their families. This is done through various government programmes like the Indira Awas Yojana and the NREG (national rural employment guarantee) scheme," Fernandes said.