The death of a 13-year-old who was hired as a dishwasher in a hotel has once again brought to light the rampant use of children as cheap labour in hotel industry. Those in the know said apart from poverty, the inability of the state machinery to make an example of those who hire children for labour work in contravention of the rules is what encourages people to hire children for cheap labour.
An official who has worked closely with the labour department and has been part of several rescue operations of child labourers said that while they are proactive in rescue, the same does not go for punishing the offen-ders."Just go through the number of convictions that have happened or if it has happened. If cases are being registered, those responsible do not end up paying a steep price. This means there is no effective deterrent," said the official. Another official said that a look at the pendency cases will also make it clear how slow the wheels of justice go. "Just go through the number of convictions that have happened or if it has happened. If cases are being registered, those responsible do not end up paying a steep price. This means there is no effective deterrent," said the official. Another official said a look at the number of cases pending will also make it clear how slow the wheels of justice go.
"Then there is the problem of rehabilitation. There are times when a rescued child is sent home, only to migrate to another city for the job. It is poverty what drives them and we need to provide effective rehabilitation," said the official. It should be noted that the National Sample Survey record shows that Gujarat has the fourth highest number of children in workforce in terms of percentage at 8.13%.
This is next only to Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Rajasthan. While 1.98% of the hotel and restaurant sector has children below the age of nine, 1.81 % children belong to the age group of 10 to 14 years. According to 2011 census, Gujarat reported 4,63,077 child workers, a considerable decrease from 4,85,530 child workers.
CJ Patel, the labour commissioner of Gujarat, however, said it was more a matter of perception that the state was not proactive in cases of child labour. "We carry out regular raids, fine the owners and if the degree of offence is severe we also ensure that the harshest sections are imposed on the offenders," said Patel.
NEEDS A CHECK
- An official who has worked closely with the labour department said that while they are proactive in rescue, the same does not go for punishing the offenders.
- While 1.98% of the hotel sector has children below the age of nine, 1.81 % children belong to the age group of 10 to 14 years.
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 "Child labour")
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