HYDERABAD: More than 6,000 minors are being forced to illegally work at business establishments, as bonded labour at bricks kilns and other unsafe places in Telangana state, as per reports.
Conflict of families and poverty has driven these minors to dropout at Class X and Intermediate and prematurely join into the work force as child labour. However, as per claims made by government records, the child labour figures in Telangana state are “lowest”, despite the truth reported and confirmed by several reports, experts, academics, non-profits, activists and researchers that thousands of minors are forced to work as child labour in Telangana state.
After the Covid-19 pandemic, the situation of dropouts have worsened and their numbers have increased due to lack of facilities at government schools. As reported by Deccan Chronicle on Tuesday, over 50,000 mid-day meal cooks are on strike and lakhs of school students are hungry for days across the state.
Dr Mamatha Raghuveer, founder, Tharuni, an organisation working on child
labour issues in Telangana state, said that majority of the child labour are
dropouts of Class X and Intermediate, and especially belong to the Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes. They are from extremely poor family backgrounds
and faced with poverty have no option but to work.
“The Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao-led BRS government had promised
free KG to PG (kindergarten to postgraduation) education, but even after
nine years of rule, has not delivered on the promise. The situation of dropouts has worsened after Covid-19 due to lack of facilities in government schools, or any support,” she said.
"I have directly mingled with the children in collecting details about their families for finding reasons to dropouts. It was revealed that families of conflicts, single parent and poverty are caused for minors to drive to work as child labour. Meanwhile, many government schools and colleges in Telangana have lack of facilities and poor families are unable to spend more money to provide education to their children in private colleges," Dr Mamatha said.
Meanwhile, the Telangana state police conduct a special drive under ‘Operation Muskan’ every year in rescuing child labour from different business establishments. In Telangana state, the police in all districts have initiated a special drive.
Suryapet Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajendra Prasad said that they have
conducted a coordination meeting with the concerned department officials to take up Operation Muskan during July. In January, Operation Smile was conducted by the police to rescue child labour.
Nalgonda Superintendent of Police (SP) Apoorva Rao said that they started conducted Operation Muskan in all police limits with the assistance of Labour and Child welfare, Revenue, Health and Medical, ICDS, and concentrating on business establishments to rescue child labour in July. Gadwal SP K. Srujana said they have rescued three child labour from Maldhakal mandal and other places while minors were working at farm lands. "We have shifted rescued children to rehabilitation centers for temporary shelter. We will provide counselling to parents and take measures to send the rescued children to schools," the SP said.
Last year, the police and government departments jointly rescued as many as
3,500 child labour across Telagnana state and shifted them to rehabilitation
centers and handed them back to parents.
