56 Kids Hidden In Cartons Rescued From Factory

On Tuesday morning, 11-year-old Ankit (name changed) walked past the
filth on a congested street to join other boyslike him at a factory in
Badli industrial area in northwest Delhi.
At 9 am, work was in full swing as the boys toiled, using their tender
fingers smeared with machine oil for fixing motors in coolers much in
demand in the hot Delhi weather.
He belongs to a village in Uttar Pradeshand came to Delhi six months
back witha middleman in search of work. His poor parents were promised
a monthly income that he is not aware of.
The child was made to work 12 hours a day with Rs 100 (277 Naira)
given as solace once a week and half a day's relief from the drudgery
on Sunday.
But Tuesday was different. A day marked by mixed emotions for the 58
children rescued in a raid by the area SDM, labour officials and
police, based on a complaint by Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA), on the
eve of the WorldDay Against Child Labour.
Fifty-six boys were rescued from four factories engaged in making
coolers andtheir parts while the two girls were freed from a spoon
factory. The rescue operations were carried out at five different
factories and at a placement agency running under the garb of an NGO.
When the raiding teams arrived, they were surprised to find the
children missing. A close inspection revealed thatthe boys were hidden
in cartons meant for coolers.
Frightened and unsure of what lay ahead, the rescued children looked
apprehensive when TOI joined them. Most of the boys told tales of
abject poverty and how they were working for survival. Nearly all
wanted to go to school and have a better future but were unsure how
the government wouldassure that.
Most of these child labourers had been trafficked from West Bengal,
Bihar and Uttar Pradesh after their parents were paid an advance. The
girls belonged to Uttar Pradesh.
A 14-year-old boy from Etah in UP said his father was a daily wager
and could not afford his education.
So he came to Delhi during the summervacations and was employed at a
factory to be able to buy his books. He said he wanted to return home
to his parents.
While the employers were arrested and booked, a statement from BBA
said the SDM present during the rescue operation refused to declare
the children as bonded labourers citing logistical compulsions of
appearing during the trial.
This way the children were denied a comprehensive rehabilitation
package under Bonded Labour System Abolition Act 1976.
BBA revealed that in 2010 and 2011, only 1,592 employers were
convicted for employing child labourers, which works out to one
employer per district per year, showing a blatant disregard for the
guidelines of Supreme Court.
It also pointed that in a period of five years (2007-2011), 12,55,987
inspections were conducted but only 17,884 violations detected and
4,263 people convicted.