NEWS  Though the pandemic has amplified its contributing factors, policy and programmatic interventions can save children.

CONTEXT

• The true extent of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on child labour is yet to be measured but all indications show that it would be significant as children are unable to attend school and parents are unable to find work.
• However, not all the factors that contribute to child labour were created by the pandemic; most of them were pre-existing and have been exposed or amplified by it.

AS PER THE DATA ON CHILDREN

• Globally, 152 million children are still in child labour, 73 million of them in hazardous work.

In India

• A Government of India survey suggests that 95% of the children in the age group of 6-13 years and 79.6% in the age group of 14-17 years are attending educational institutions (formal and informal).
• Hence, a large number of children in India remain vulnerable, facing physical and psychological risks to a healthy development.
• The Census of India 2011 reports 10.1 million working children in the age group of 5-14 years.
• As per UNESCO estimates based on the 2011 Census record, 38.1 million children were “out of school” (18.3% of total children in the age group of 6-13 years).
• Work performed by these children may not appear to be immediately dangerous, but it may produce long-term and devastating consequences for their education, their skills acquisition.
• This in turn may impact their future possibilities to overcome the vicious circle of poverty, due to incomplete education and poor quality jobs.
• A Rapid Survey on Children (2013-14), jointly undertaken by the Ministry of Women and Child Development and UNICEF, found that less than half of children in the age group of 10-14 years have completed primary education. These remain challenges we must overcome.

PIECE OF GOOD NEWS AS A RESULT OF POSITIVE STEPS TAKEN

• Child labour in India has decreased in the decade 2001 to 2011, and this demonstrates that the right combination of policy and programmatic interventions can make a difference.
• Policy interventions such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) 2005, the Right to Education Act 2009 and the Mid Day Meal Scheme have paved the way for children to be in schools along with guaranteed wage employment (unskilled) for rural families.
• The National Child Labour Project Scheme focuses towards convergence of government schemes. Under this Scheme, the children in the age group of 9-14 years are withdrawn from work and put into NCLP Special Training Centres, where they are provided with bridge education, vocational training, mid-day meal, stipend, healthcare, etc. before being mainstreamed into the formal education system.  
• Indian government have further demonstrated its commitment to the elimination of child labour, by ratifying International Labour Organization Conventions Nos. 138 and 182 in 2017.
• The Ministry of Labour and Employment-operated online portal, PENCiL (Platform for Effective Enforcement for No Child Labour), which allows government officials, law enforcement agencies and non-governmental organisations to share information and coordinate on child labour cases at the national, State and local levels for effective enforcement of child labour laws.

CONCERNS AGGRAVATED DUE TO PANDEMIC

• The economic contraction and lockdowns ensuing from the pandemic have affected all countries, leading to income reductions, mainly in the informal economy.
• India has experienced slower economic growth and rising unemployment even before the pandemic, and subsequent lockdowns have worsened the situation.
• The large number of returned migrant workers has compounded the socio-economic challenges.
• With increased economic insecurity, lack of social protection and reduced household income, children from poor households are being pushed to contribute to the family income with the risk of exposure to exploitative work.
• Hence, pandemic has posed a real risk of back tracking the gains made in eliminating child labour.

CHALLENGES IN EDUCATION AMIDST PANDEMIC

• With closure of schools and challenges of distance learning, children may drop out leaving little scope for return.
• As many schools and educational institutions are moving to online platforms for continuation of learning, the ‘digital divide’ is a challenge that India has to reconcile within the next several years.
  • The NSS Report titled ‘Household Social Consumption on Education in India’ suggests that in 2017-18, only 24% of Indian households had access to an Internet facility (where 15% was among rural households and 42% among urban households).
  • The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2020 survey highlights that a third of the total enrolled children received some kind of learning materials from their teachers during the reference period (October 2020) as digital mode of education was opted for.

WAYFORWARD

• The challenges are significant and manifold but it is not impossible to meet them if the right level of commitment among all the relevant stakeholders and the right mix of policy and programmatic interventions are present.
• It is through strategic partnerships and collaborations involving government, employers, trade unions, community-based organisations and child labour families that we could make a difference building back better and sooner.
• As we reinforce the commitment to protect children from unacceptable forms of work, we also need to focus on mitigating the aftermath of the pandemic.
• Also, there is a need for a strong alliance paving our way towards ending child labour in all its forms by 2025 as countries around the world have agreed to in Sustainable Development Goal 8.7.

We — governments, employers, unions, civil society organisations and even individuals — must rise and pledge to ‘Take Action against Child Labour’ as a part of the UN’s declaration of 2021 as the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour. Our actions today will determine the future of children tomorrow.

Reference:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/breaking-the-cycle-of-child-labour-is-in-indias-hands/article34702648.ece