Child labour use down in diamond trade, says report

Levels of child labour in the diamond processing industry in India have reduced drastically in the period between 1998 to 2003, according to a report by A F Ferguson and Company.

The report said the percentage for the industry as a whole has declined from 0.55 per cent in 1998 to 0.31 per cent in 2003.

The presence of child labour in the Indian gemstone industry is estimated to be around 0.98 per cent, in the jewellery industry around 0.1 per cent and in the synthetic industry approximately 0.31 per cent, the report added.

The Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) had commissioned A F Ferguson to conduct the study and determine the prevalence of child labour primarily in the diamonds segment, but gemstones, synthetic stones and jewellery sectors were also surveyed.

The chairman of the GJEPC, Bakul Mehta, said, "We strongly believe that it is the industry's responsibility to ensure the eradication of child labour. I am happy to notice the progress in the endeavour towards completely eradicating even the negligible presence in the sector."

GJEPC plans to conduct a series of seminars in gem and jewellery manufacturing centres such as Surat, Coimbatore, Mumbai, and Jaipur to spread awareness.

A total of 663 manufacturing units were covered by the study across 21 locations in Gujarat, Rajasthan Maharashtra, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.