The future of any country rests wholly on the healthy development of a child, under conditions of freedom and dignity. Parents look forward to employ their very young children to add to their paltry incomes. Poverty is being exploited by employing children in hazardous jobs that is unsuited to their age and physical strength.
Any child who does any work that is under his age and which is not legally allowed by the Law, comes under the category of Child Labour. The hazardous work takes a toll on the child's mental, physical, social, emotional, educational and Spiritual development. This issue effects the human society too. To a child, the most important requirement for his/her all-round growth is good education, and the freedom that nature gives in his/her childhood which is meant to be enjoyed to the brim. When this is not assured to them, they have lost their precious childhood for good.
We have come across children who suffer from pangs of hunger, thirst, mal-nutrition, and diseases. The rate of infant mortality is very high, more so in India. Exploitation of children on a large scale for contemptible labour has been a bane of independent India. Children are asked to do various kinds of jobs that are injurious to their tender age and health, viz. working in fireworks factories, weaving of carpets, beedi-making, domestic work, construction sites, etc. The reason for this is that many parents from poor economical backgrounds pledge the labour of their child for very little or no wages at all in repayment of a debt that they had incurred and for which they are unable to pay back. The situation here is very grim!
Children are forced to be tedious and do jobs like polishing of shoes on the pavements, cleaning of cars, laundering, selling things on the streets like newspapers, wash-cloth at Traffic-signals, etc. Knowing very well the rules that the UNO has set up against child labour, yet we find people employing these children for odd jobs, with not even the slightest concern on humanutarian grounds. I have come across news where the children are shown to be exploited for labour which is assumed as an accepted practice and perceived as a necessity to alleviate poverty. The reason here is that due to the high level of poverty, parents from the rural sector are ready to sacrifice their children's education to satisfy the basic needs of the younger siblings in the families.
There is no control in the family about the increasing population. I have heard these very rural, illiterate people say," A child's birth is God's gift to them", so they should not take the necessary precautions for birth-control. May I ask, Where has the Common-sense gone? God has given all of us that, isn't it? We need to educate these people on such issues. I have seen children coming from below poverty levels, who are either topless or bottom-less. When I asked them the reason why they are dressed like that, they replied, their parents have asked them to share the clothes as its not affordable. Why then must one have a number of kids like a cricket Team in a family? Can't they have just one or two kids and bring them up in a respectable manner instead of having a gang of kids who always go semi-nude? Child labour is a Conspicuous problem in India. The meagre income of child labourers is also absobed by their families.
I must make a point on one issue. A child who delivers newspapers or any job ( befitting his age and stamina), before his school hours might actually benefit from learning to work, gaining responsibility, and earn a bit of money that can help him in acquiring his school provisions, or his fees. BUT, what happens 'IF' the child is not paid at all? Is that not Exploitation? We have come across many young maids working as domestic help. This is risky. They can easily be exploited and abused, sexually or physically by their employers. Seeing the alarming rate of child labour, one can easily consider the future of their country. We need to bring an awareness in the minds, and attitudes of the people around us. We could spare a little of our time in teaching the children of our maids, as I find that since education is not affordable to them, they have the tendency to send their children to work. Basic education can be imparted, such education that helps children learn such skills that can enable them to earn a living. Impart to the illiterate rural people the importance of family control, the importance of good education, skills, to their children which can help in a prosperous nation.
N.B. More articles to follow.
Any child who does any work that is under his age and which is not legally allowed by the Law, comes under the category of Child Labour. The hazardous work takes a toll on the child's mental, physical, social, emotional, educational and Spiritual development. This issue effects the human society too. To a child, the most important requirement for his/her all-round growth is good education, and the freedom that nature gives in his/her childhood which is meant to be enjoyed to the brim. When this is not assured to them, they have lost their precious childhood for good.
We have come across children who suffer from pangs of hunger, thirst, mal-nutrition, and diseases. The rate of infant mortality is very high, more so in India. Exploitation of children on a large scale for contemptible labour has been a bane of independent India. Children are asked to do various kinds of jobs that are injurious to their tender age and health, viz. working in fireworks factories, weaving of carpets, beedi-making, domestic work, construction sites, etc. The reason for this is that many parents from poor economical backgrounds pledge the labour of their child for very little or no wages at all in repayment of a debt that they had incurred and for which they are unable to pay back. The situation here is very grim!
Children are forced to be tedious and do jobs like polishing of shoes on the pavements, cleaning of cars, laundering, selling things on the streets like newspapers, wash-cloth at Traffic-signals, etc. Knowing very well the rules that the UNO has set up against child labour, yet we find people employing these children for odd jobs, with not even the slightest concern on humanutarian grounds. I have come across news where the children are shown to be exploited for labour which is assumed as an accepted practice and perceived as a necessity to alleviate poverty. The reason here is that due to the high level of poverty, parents from the rural sector are ready to sacrifice their children's education to satisfy the basic needs of the younger siblings in the families.
There is no control in the family about the increasing population. I have heard these very rural, illiterate people say," A child's birth is God's gift to them", so they should not take the necessary precautions for birth-control. May I ask, Where has the Common-sense gone? God has given all of us that, isn't it? We need to educate these people on such issues. I have seen children coming from below poverty levels, who are either topless or bottom-less. When I asked them the reason why they are dressed like that, they replied, their parents have asked them to share the clothes as its not affordable. Why then must one have a number of kids like a cricket Team in a family? Can't they have just one or two kids and bring them up in a respectable manner instead of having a gang of kids who always go semi-nude? Child labour is a Conspicuous problem in India. The meagre income of child labourers is also absobed by their families.
I must make a point on one issue. A child who delivers newspapers or any job ( befitting his age and stamina), before his school hours might actually benefit from learning to work, gaining responsibility, and earn a bit of money that can help him in acquiring his school provisions, or his fees. BUT, what happens 'IF' the child is not paid at all? Is that not Exploitation? We have come across many young maids working as domestic help. This is risky. They can easily be exploited and abused, sexually or physically by their employers. Seeing the alarming rate of child labour, one can easily consider the future of their country. We need to bring an awareness in the minds, and attitudes of the people around us. We could spare a little of our time in teaching the children of our maids, as I find that since education is not affordable to them, they have the tendency to send their children to work. Basic education can be imparted, such education that helps children learn such skills that can enable them to earn a living. Impart to the illiterate rural people the importance of family control, the importance of good education, skills, to their children which can help in a prosperous nation.
N.B. More articles to follow.
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