Gathering at the mausoleum of Gandhi, the protesters passed around petitions and called on the Indian President K.R. Narayanan to impose a ban on using children as domestic servants. Although child labour is illegal in India, the laws are not enforced. There are many sweatshops throughout the country that use child labour in carpet making, the manufacture of sporting goods and numerous other trades including domestic labour. Official government estimates put the number of child labourers at about 17 million. A recent survey by the International Labor Organisation estimates that out of 250 million child labourers in the world at least 60 million are in India.
Poverty is the main reason for child labour.
Children are often forced to work from a young age to earn a livelihood for themselves and their families. They also demanded a salary increase and a resumption of publication of three newspapers that have been temporarily closed down. The Peoples Alliance government plans to restructure the ANCL, paving the way for the eventual privatisation of the company and retrenchment of staff. ANCL management has delayed signing a collective agreement, which includes salary increases and other benefits for the employees, for over six months. Union leaders have said that the firm's new management, which was appointed three months ago, has not granted a 28 percent salary increase agreed to by its predecessors.