BBC News reported recently that India is taking a tougher stance on child labour. Tougher than government notification issued by the Ministry of Labour and Employment this August, that prohibited and made liable for punishment those who employed "children as domestic servants or servants or in dhabas (roadside eateries), restaurants, hotels, motels, teashops, resorts, spas or in other recreational centres" and restricted the age of children allowed to work in these places to above 14 years.
Defining child labour in a way that everyone agrees has always been a challenge. The closest one comes to consensus on this issue is through the International Labour Organisation's (ILO) Convention No. 182 that defines worst forms of child labour. The interesting thing is that India is one for the few countries that has not ratified the convention.
The convention acknowledges that in some countries and contexts children may need to contribute economically to the family's needs, but seeks to safeguard their rights by listing the 'worst forms of child labour' that children should not be engaged in. And the ban mentioned above brings domestic labour and work in 'recreational centres' into the cover of India's Child Labour (Prohibition and Enforecement) Act 1986.
The current push in the form of a proposal sent around by Ms. Renuka Chowdary, Minister for Women and Child Development to legal experts and state governments seeks to completely ban any child below the age of 11 working. Period. According to the BBC, Ms. Chowdary said "The idea behind the proposal is to ensure the right to education and a life of dignity to every single child as enshrined in our constitution." The report does not explain how this suggestion will acheive this.
The Hindustan Times reports that the proposal also seeks to give "the government the power to notify rules to impart education to child labourer." While education is a right for every child embodied in the Indian Constitution, the mechanics of this have been stuck in the 'corridors of power' making education possible only for the children of the rich.
NGOs like World Vision and Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save the Child Movement) say that every child not in school is vulnerable to child labour, and hence are advocating for the immediate roll out of the 'Right to education' act. And the consensus is that these 'tough stances' are nothing but half measures. And what happens to the children who are not allowed to work as per law and cannot attend school?
Education made available free for every child is the only way to end child labour in India.
And if we look at the way education in India is going, that may never happen. Sorry about being a pessimistic cuss, but a quick look at the way the 'right to education' scenario is will bear out this comment. Article 21 of our constitution lays out that every Indian child has a right to free eduction up to the primary level. But what we have on the ground is a dysfunctional (at best) public school system and a burgeoning private school system that is beyond the reach of the children who need education the most - the children living below the poverty line.
The best way to address the issue of child labour is to adderss the issue of systemic poverty. This does not mean just education for children and legislation that keeps children out of child labour. It means making sure their parents earn enough to make sure their children stay in school and not force them to go to school. It means more schools and better curiculumm that makes sure that children finish a good education and come out with enough opportunities to find jobs or start their own enterprises. This means access to information, knowledge, know how, markets and credit - the five fingers the give a hand up to people living in poverty.
This means we have to fix our school system either through the much touted and equally maligned public school system or strengthening of the existing education system buttressed by a 'every child in school' campaign. We need to make sure that parents are committed, made responsible and are able to keep their committment to keep children in school.
Just 'tough stances' are not enough.
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