It was World Day Against Child Labour on Tuesday but for lakhs of children across Bengaluru, it made no difference as they rose early to rush to work as usual to feed their families. Over two lakh children in Bengaluru and over nine lakh in Karnataka work as child labourers and for them, the day brought no cheer. While the children continue to be robbed of an education and their dreams, sometimes at the risk of ruining their health, the government is unashamedly dragging its feet over making the law more stringent to come to their rescue.

Not all children working in hazardous industries can presently turn to the law for help as the the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act protects only those under 14 from being employed in them, leaving those in the age group 15 to 18 vulnerable to exploitation as cheap labour by the hazardous sector. The problem is not easy to dismiss as around 23 per cent of the country’s population is between 15 and 18 years old. Although it has been suggested that the act should be amended to ban employment of children below the age of 18 in hazardous factories and industries, the government seems in no rush to do so.

This despite the fact that Karnataka figures among the five worst states in all the three age groups (10-14, 14-18 and 10-18) of child labour, according to an analysis done by Child Rights and You (CRY). The state also has the seventh largest child labour presence in India. Experts point out that having a uniform law will help solve the problem of child labour to a great extent as there will be less room for ambiguity. “In many families, the support from children between 15 and 18 years of age is crucial. They can be enrolled in skill development courses after being rescued from working in the hazardous sector. However, every child must receive quality education till 14 years of age,” says Nina Nayak, chairperson, Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights.

Hiteshji, 12 years
“I will become whatever I am destined to. If only I could afford to study, I could tell you what my dreams were. I don’t mind the work I do but I would really like to study.” asks 12 year old Hiteshji, as he carries water from an under- construction site to the spot where he makes flowerpots and idols from cement. He and his brother have been promised Rs 10,000 for four months of work, which means they draw wages of Rs 1,250 each a month.

Manish, 13 years
Manish Kumar came to Bengaluru from Bihar with a distant relative when he was seven and found work in a small gold factory in Nagarathpet. He thought his life had changed when he was rescued by an NGO with government help but to his dismay Manish found himself back at the same factory in three weeks. The treatment by his employer has worsened and his place of work remained as unhygienic as it was.

Shashikala, 16 years
Shashikala HB from Gadag began to work as a domestic maid when she was not even 11. She was rescued by the Association for Promoting Social Action (APSA) and sent to a school under the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) and then the Government High School in Domasandra. Now 16, she aspires to be a bank manager.