Lok Sabha Question No. 1168 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-25
Subject: Child Labour/Workers
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Unmesh Bhaiyyasaheb Patil, Bheemrao Baswanthrao Patil, Ramesh Chand Bind, Rajeshbhai Naranbhai Chudasama, Aparajita Sarangi, Rajendra Dhedya  Gavit, Shrikant Eknath Shinde, Poonam (Mahajan) Vajendla Rao, Ashok Kumar Rawat, Adala Prabhakara Reddy, Aparupa  Poddar, Rita Bahuguna Joshi, Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhepatil, Hemant Patil, Heena Vijaykumar Gavit

## MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1168

TO BE ANSWERED ON 25.07.2022

## CHILD LABOUR/WORKERS

## 1168. SHRI UNMESH BHAIYYASAHEB PATIL:

SHRI B.B.PATIL:

SHRI RAMESH CHAND BIND:

SHRI RAJESHBHAI CHUDASAMA:

SHRIMATI APARAJITA SARANGI:

SHRI RAJENDRA DHEDYA GAVIT:

DR. SHRIKANT EKNATH SHINDE:

SHRIMATI POONAM MAHAJAN:

SHRI ASHOK KUMAR RAWAT:

SHRI ADALA PRABHAKARA REDDY:

SHRIMATI APARUPA PODDAR:

PROF. RITA BAHUGUNA JOSHI:

DR. SUJAY RADHAKRISHNA VIKHE PATIL:

SHRI HEMANT SRIRAM PATIL:

DR. HEENA GAVIT:

Will  the  Minister  of  LABOUR  AND  EMPLOYMENT  be  pleased  to state:

- (a)the total reported incidents of child labour across the country and
- number of child labout rescued over the last five years;
- (b)the  number  of  incidents  of  child  labour  increased  due  to  the pandemic and its associated financial difficulties and whether there is any plan to form a separate Committee to understand the impact on children's welfare;
- (c)whether the Government maintains data of the number of children over  14  years  and  below  18  years  employed  in  various  fields including types of jobs identified and if so, the details thereof along with their average earning, State-wise;
- (d)whether the children in aforementioned occupations are forced to work out of compulsion or socio-economic need or voluntarily work in  those occupations, if so, the the steps taken to reduce or deter employment of children over 14 years but below 18 years;

- (e)whether  the  Government  has  taken  any  steps  to  rehabilitate children who have been forced to take up jobs due to their family's financial instability, if so, the details thereof;
- (f)whether  National  Child  Labour  Project  (NCLP)  is  active  in  15 districts and if so, the steps taken to open new special centres in other districts including Grants in-Aid Scheme for Voluntary Organisations and progress made by the Government to merge NCLP with Samagra Shiksha Scheme; and
- (g)whether the State Governments have raised the demand for making changes in Child Labour Law and if so, the details and response of the Government in this regard?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI RAMESWAR TELI)

- (a) & (b): As  per  'Crime  in  India,  2020'  a  publication  of  National Crime Records Bureau, 204, 462, 464, 772 and 476 number of cases were registered during calendar years 2016 to 2020 respectively under Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 in the  country.  The  number  of  children  rescued/withdrawn  from  work, rehabilitated  and  mainstreamed  under  National  Child  Labour  Project (NCLP)  Scheme  during  last  five  financial  years  i.e.  from    2017-18  to 2021 - 22  were  47635, 50284, 54894, 58289 and 13271 (provisional) respectively.
- (c): As  per  Census  2011,  the  occupation  wise  details  of  main workers in the age group of 14 to 18 years is as below:

| Cultivators                 | 29,86,152   |
|-----------------------------|-------------|
| Agricultural Labourers      | 51,12,374   |
| House Hold Industry Workers | 6,45,672    |
| Other Workers               | 54,32,990   |
| Total Workers               | 1,41,77,188 |

- (d) & (e): The  Government  has  taken  a  number  of  steps  to  prevent the children being employed as child labourers, and these include:-
- (i) Enactment of the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Amendment  Act,  2016.  The  amended  Act  inter-alia  provides  for complete  prohibition  of  work  or  employment  of  children  below  14 years  of  age  in  any  occupation  and  processes  and  prohibition  of adolescents  in the age  group  of 14 to 18 years in  hazardous occupations and processes.  It also provides for stricter punishment for  employers  for  violation  of  the  Act  and  made  the  offence  as cognizable.
- (ii) Framing of Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Central Rules
- (iii) Framing of model State Action Plan enumerating action points to be taken by respective State Governments.
- (iv) Identification  and  notification  of  the  Occupations/  Processes where children below the age of fourteen cannot help; and also those Occupation/ Processes where Adolescents cannot work.
- (f): NCLP scheme was approved for continuation up to 31.03.2021 and since then has been subsumed  / merged  with Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) Scheme. As on 20.07.2022, Special Training Centre (STC)  which were approved  by the Ministry of Labour & Employment   prior to 31.03.2021 and which have not yet completed two  years  as  per  NCLP  Scheme  guidelines,  are  operational  in  8 districts in the States of Assam,  Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal.
- (g): The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986 was amended  in  2016  and  the  amended  Act  is  now  called  Child  and Adolescent  Labour  (Prohibition  and  Regulation)  Act,  1986.    No  such proposal from the State Government seeking amendment to Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 is pending in the Ministry of Labour & Employment.

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