The Union Cabinet on August 28 approved a proposal for amending the Child
Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, to ban employment of
children aged up to 14 in any form of industry.
It will be an offence to employ such children not only in factories or
industries but also in homes or on farms, if their labour is meant to
serve any commercial interest.
The Ministry of Labour is likely to introduce the amendment bill in Parliament soon.
Quoting the National Sample Survey Organisation’s figures, official
sources said the amendment would benefit 46 lakh children, who have been
working in various industries now, and they can concentrate on
education.
The Cabinet also approved another amendment to define children aged
14-18 as “adolescents” and prohibit their employment in mines,
explosives industries, chemical and paint industries and other hazardous
establishments.
The government’s decision is in line with the convention of the
International Labour Organisation (ILO), which prohibits any form of
child labour until the age of 14.
Since the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act or RTE
now stipulates compulsory and free education of children up to the age
of 14, the upper age limit in the Child Labour Act has been kept at 14.
The RTE, which makes education the fundamental right of a child, was
passed by Parliament on August 4, 2009. It sets forth the modalities of
free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14. The Act came into
effect on April 1, 2010.
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