67 child labourers rescued from Delhi

Sixty-seven child labourers have been rescued from five industrial units in the city during raids by a team of police and members of an NGO.

"The children, who were working in hazardous atmosphere in the industrial units in Aman Vihar area of the city, were rescued yesterday," said Rakesh Senger, national general secretary of Bachpan Bachao Andolan.
    
He said that the children who were trafficked from Bihar were rescued after Bachpan Bachao Andolan gave specific inputs to the local administration. The NGO has been engaged in rescuing child labourers. The children were working in five factories that manufacture shoes and bags. No arrests have been made so far.
  
As per directive of the Child Welfare Committee, the children have now been kept at Mukhi Ashram in Burari, which is a government registered care house. Meanwhile, in another development, the Delhi High Court today empowered police to initiate criminal prosecution of employers who use children as child labourers and to recover Rs20,000 from the owner as penalty without waiting for conviction. Senger said factory owners are bound to pay Rs20,000 per child as per the directive of the court.