Lok Sabha Question No. 3502 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-12-21
Subject: Child Labour in Brick Kilns
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: NANDI YELLAIAH

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3502 TO BE ANSWERED ON 21.12.2015

## CHILD LABOUR IN BRICK KILNS

## 3502. SHRI NANDI YELLAIAH:

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

- (a)the total number of children engaged as child labour in various brick kilns in the country, State/UT-wise including Telangana and Andhra Pradesh;
- (b)whether the Government is aware of violation of child labour laws in such brick kilns and if so, the reaction of the Government thereto;
- (c)the  details  of  action  taken  against  the  offenders  along  with  the current status of rehabilitation processes to relieve the child labour force from various such factories including brick kilns in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh; and
- (d)the  measures  taken  by  the  Government  to  completely  eradicate child labour in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (IC) FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI BANDARU DATTATREYA)

(a) & (b): Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986 prohibits the employment  of children below 14 years of age in certain occupations  and  processes  and  regulates  the  working  condition  of children  in  employment  where  they  are  not  prohibited.  As  per  2001 Census, 84,972 children were found employed in the Brick-Klins, tiles. The number of main workers in the age group of 5 to 14 years as per 2011  Census,  State-wise  is  given  at  Annexure.  The  occupation  wise data is not available from Census 2011.

Contd..2/-

(c) & (d): As per the information received from the States, the total number of Prosecutions under Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act,  1986  during  the  last  three  years  i.e.  2012,  2013  and  2014  are 4,731,  4,899  and  3,340  respectively.  Considering  the  nature  of  the problem  of  child  labour,  Government  is  following  a  multi-pronged strategy. It comprises of statutory and legislative measures, rehabilitation of children withdrawn  from work  through specific scheme and universal elementary education along with convergence with other schemes for socio-economic development.

A Bill to amend the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986 has been introduced in Rajya Sabha in 2012. The Government has decided to move Official Amendments  to the Amendment Bill. The Official Amendments along with the Amendment Bill, inter-alia, covers complete prohibition on employment of children below 14 years and linking the age of prohibition with the age under Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.

Government  is  implementing  the  National  Child  Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme under which children rescued/ withdrawn from work in the age group of 9-14 years are enrolled in the NCLP Special Training  Centres,  where  they  are  provided  with  bridge  education, vocational  training,  mid  day  meal,  stipend,  health  care  etc.  before mainstreaming into formal education system. Children in the age group of 5-8 years are directly linked to the formal education system through a  close  coordination  with  the  Sarva  Shiksha  Abhiyaan  (SSA).  As  per the  information  received  from  NCLP  District  Project  Societies,  the number of child labourers rescued/withdrawn from work, rehabilitated and mainstreamed under National Child Labour Project Scheme during the  year  2013-14,  2014-15  and  the  2015-16  (as  on  30.9.2015)  are 64,050, 1,16,957 and 35,148 respectively.

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## ANNEXURE  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  &  (b)  OF  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3502 FOR ANSWER ON 21.12.2015 BY SHRI NANDI YELLAIAH  REGARDING CHILD LABOUR IN BRICK KILNS.

## State wise details of main workers in the age group of 5-14 years as per Census 2011:

| Sl. No.   | Name of State/UT        |   No. of main workers in the age group of 5-14 years |
|-----------|-------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|
| 1.        | Andaman &Nicobar Island |                                                  999 |
| 2.        | Andhra Pradesh **       |                                               404851 |
| 3.        | Arunachal Pradesh       |                                                 5766 |
| 4.        | Assam                   |                                                99512 |
| 5.        | Bihar                   |                                               451590 |
| 6.        | Chandigarh U.T.         |                                                 3135 |
| 7.        | Chhattisgarh            |                                                63884 |
| 8.        | Dadra &Nagar H.         |                                                 1054 |
| 9.        | Daman &Diu U.T.         |                                                  774 |
| 10.       | Delhi U.T.              |                                                26473 |
| 11.       | Goa                     |                                                 6920 |
| 12.       | Gujarat                 |                                               250318 |
| 13.       | Haryana                 |                                                53492 |
| 14.       | Himachal Pradesh        |                                                15001 |
| 15.       | Jammu &Kashmir          |                                                25528 |
| 16.       | Jharkhand               |                                                90996 |
| 17.       | Karnataka               |                                               249432 |
| 18.       | Kerala                  |                                                21757 |
| 19.       | Lakshadweep UT          |                                                   28 |
| 20.       | Madhya Pradesh          |                                               286310 |
| 21.       | Maharashtra             |                                               496916 |
| 22.       | Manipur                 |                                                11805 |
| 23.       | Meghalaya               |                                                18839 |
| 24.       | Mizoram                 |                                                 2793 |
| 25.       | Nagaland                |                                                11062 |
| 26.       | Odisha                  |                                                92087 |
| 27.       | Puducherry U.T.         |                                                 1421 |
| 28.       | Punjab                  |                                                90353 |
| 29.       | Rajasthan               |                                               252338 |
| 30.       | Sikkim                  |                                                 2704 |
| 31.       | Tamil Nadu              |                                               151437 |
| 32.       | Tripura                 |                                                 4998 |
| 33.       | Uttar Pradesh           |                                               896301 |
| 34.       | Uttarakhand             |                                                28098 |
| 35.       | West Bengal             |                                               234275 |
|           | Total                   |                                              4353247 |

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