Child Labour

says that Child labour remains to be a serious problem in the world today. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO in short), millions of children in the world work in hazardous and intolerable jobs. Currently the number of working children in the world are between the ages of 5 and 14 which total to 200 million.

According to the national child labour survey report of 2001, children are engaged in productive and non-productive work beyond their capacity in both the urban and rural areas in India. In the urban areas, children are often forced into labour due to situations of persisting poverty which requires all family members to contribute to the household income. Many factors are known to have contributed to the health problems of child labourers. This could be due to the fact that most of the labourers perform tasks that are beyond their capacity or punishment by employers or other people.

Concerning the reasons for child labour in the North East were that, 33.3% of them reported that they came in search of work, 16.6% due to loss of parents, 26.6%

due to parental separation and twenty three.3% due to shortage of food.

The result shows that 43.3% of the child labours were from broken families (one or more of their parents were not alive or have separated).

Majority of the respondent reported that they faced many health problems.

Malaria like sickness and metabolic process diseases area unit the main pathological state according by eighty three of the respondent, eye problem 11.4% and 6.6% were faced skin problem.

According to the respondent malaria like illnesses had symptoms such as headache, fever, sweating etc. The respiratory diseases were characterized by chest pain, cough, fever, etc. Among child labourers who reported health problems, 63.26% attended government facilities, 20.4% attended private health institutions, 10.2% used traditional medicines and 6.12% did not seek any medical treatment.

Though child labour in the country has been banned by the Supreme Court, the order of the apex court is yet to be implemented in true spirit.

It has become a standard sight to examine a toddler operating in a very garage, hotel and business establishment, and under hazardous conditions as well throughout the country.

North East India is also not an exception in this regard. Several thousands of child labourers working in garages, hotels, etc. A certain percentage of domestic workers in the city are of 14 years of age or younger. Though poverty is the main cause which forces many children belonging to the poor families in cities like Assam and Shillong to work as child labourers, the State government in these states has so far failed to rescue many of these child labourers. Sources in the Labour Commissioner office said that only 45 child labourers were rescued in the city of Guwahati from January 2012 to September 2012.

At least twenty seven cases were registered against people who used kids below fourteen years older as staff, the sources added.

Suggestions

1. Moreover their problem is not well understood and not protected by the community and especially by the police. Intervention areas that should be stressed are providing free and proper formal education;

2. Improving access to existing health care facilities;

3. Providing proper health education to these poor families and children;

4. Providing family planning service to parents heightening the children right awareness of parent, child and public;

5. Most importantly, providing family support to alleviate poverty.

Dr. G.L. Parvathamma(2015), says that Child Labour has become a big problem in India. It is no doubt, a socio-economic problem.

A national survey had shown that quite sixteen million kids between eight to 14 area unit mostly appointed in hotels and boarding homes, in tea-shops, restaurants, in commercial firms,

in factories and fisheries. They are engaged into all sorts of work for the hope of earning something for the family. As a result, they are also deprived of primary education, without which chance of any success in life is very remote. Children that are employed in agricultural labour in zones like North, North-East, West, and South usually drive carts and take care of cattle. Girl children in all the zones have to act as maid servants and baby sitters.

They cook and clean, they wash clothes and collect fuel.

It is true that a number of laws have been imposed to prevent child labour. But they are more flouted than obeyed.

The ban has been obligatory to avoid wasting the kids from dangerous works and to revive their care-free childhood.

Some say that if the ban is imposed without the arrangements of proper rehabilitation of the child workers, it would be of no effect. There is no zone in India which is free from the evil of the curse of child labour.