FOR THE MOTION
Ever been to a roadside Chaiwala or a Shuddh Desi Dhaba . If
yes, then atleast for once , you might have noticed a small boy of 12 or
13 in rags , with a towel on his shoulders, serving you chai or taking
your orders . In a very carefree manner you say him " oe
chhotu , chai laa".
Whether it's you or your parents or their parents.You
do it , We all do it. Many of us love watching Ruhi in the show 'Yeh
h Mohabbatein ' and Tapu in 'Taarak Mehta Ka Oolta Chasma' . Right
!!Of course,they are lovely to watch. But, they too are made to work,
Then why do we call them CHILD ARTISTS and not CHILD LABOURERS .
But,
the Truth is this that each and every child who works to receive any
amount for the work done is Child Labour . For abolishing child labour ,
the Government is at work . In the year 1986, Child labour Amendment
Act said that, A Child can put in some minimum number of hours for a
particular work. A Child must receive an hour break after every three
hour stretch. They can't work between 7pm and 8am . But , the main point
is this that here, Child refers to any person who has not completed his
14 years of age. But , The Child labour amendment act 2016 is a step
further than this one.
This Amendment completely prohibits engagement of
children below the age of 14 in all occupations and processes so that,
they are able to enjoy their fundamental right to education under right
of children to free and compulsory education act 2009. The bill also
makes engaging child labour an offence punishable by imprisonment for a
term of not less than 6 months and upto 2 years, or by fine of not less
than 20000RS or RS 50000 or even both . This amendment has been slapped
by the child rights activists saying, that it will throw children into a
bigger pool of child labour .
But , I strongly oppose that ,Because,
this act prohibits any Child under 14 to work in any kind of
occupation. Thus, it gives them time and opportunity both, to receive
Education . Either rich or poor all need Education and to make it more
accessible, Government has made it cheaper.
But still, rather then
sending children to school if we send them to work places then, who is
at FAULT??? We or the Government? As I told before this Act prohibits a
child under 14 to engage in any kind of activity whether its hazardous
or not? because he is a mere child he can not decide what is hazardous
and what's not ??
Talking further about the Amendment, it allows
children to work in Family Enterprises only on holidays and after school
hours. But even that is not appreciated by child right activists. The
main point is this, that to make hundred from ten it needs
to pass on from 9 different stages.
It needs Experience, A child will
be able to learn all the skills required right from his childhood. This
amendment very strongly focuses that a child will be allowed to work
only and only if work has no effect on his studies and no interference
in school hours. Do you still think that this Amendment is against
children? if yes !! then think again.
Furthermore, Government also
enhances the strictness and punishment for employing child labour. What
else do we expect ?? In India , BBA that is Bachpan Bachao Andolan has
been responsible for rescuing around 5000 children below 14 yrs between
January 2010 to December 2014 with the help of Government Agencies ,
Police and Judiciary . This act as well is going to give opportunities
for under 14 to live their life.
Besides all Controversies, just for
once think about that child who is eager to learn but is thrown into
this Terrible World of Child Labour.... What was his Fault???
In the age , when he needs to go to school, when his hands
must hold pen and notebook ,he is made to work in farms, shops and even
in our homes. If you want them to work, then School is the best place
to Work. On this, I remember quoting few lines from a poem that i
recently read .....
babu ji ek rupaiyadedo , kehke aaya paas mere
chehre parmoti,pet mein bhookh, le aaya wo paas mere
guzar gayaaankhon ke aage , kyun uskaa sara bachpan haath jod kyukhada rha , aankon k age saara bachpan.
kabhi kitabon tohkabhi foolo ko bechne ki jugat me khota bachpan
dhue or shor k beech, kyu ashko mein khota bachpan.
Every child has the Right to Live his Life and Right to
Study. It is heart breaking to think that in this age of Technology and
Communication , Where we know everything that's happening in the
farthest corners of the world ,Children are at such disgusting stage.
When we have children like Priyanshi Somani who became the Winner of
Mental Calculation World Cup in 2010 like Kautlya Pandit who is named as
" GOOGLE BOY " and Satyam Kumar who is the youngest one ever to
crack IIT exam , we still are narrow minded and poor in thoughts to
send them in work places. Talking about their backgrounds, they all
belong to simple backgrounds and even one of them is son of a Farmer .
Just imagine, if their parents too forced them to work. Would they be
child genius as they are !!
We all have heard about "NO PAIN NO GAIN"...
if we want to grow and develop we need not send to farms and factories.
But there is no harm in letting them discover their ancient family
works.
There are certain kinds of works where family support is needed
but we can't name it as CHILD LABOUR. If a boy helps his father in his
Business, Would we call it a Child Labour ?? NO ..... This Amendment
clearly differentiates Child Labour and Child Help. If a child is happy
and willing to work , then he must be allowed .
There are children who
even after attaining degrees find it suitable to work in Family
Establishments. Instead of wasting time in finding a perfect job , What
if he already knows what he is best at . They will be experienced, right
from their Childhood. They will be sure about the field they want to
pursue.
In this Amendment, Adolescents too are not allowed to work in
hazardous occupation. They can get themselves involved in an occupation
that allows them to earn money because at this stage they are grown up
enough to contribute in their Family's Income.
Government is taking hard steps through these Amendments,
and is in need of our support..Government is not to be blamed when we
send our children to work places to earn some money.If we want to
abolish Child Labour,We need to pull it out from its roots.
Remember, a potter's child
will end up as a Potter ;a Weaver's child as a Weaver ;a Farmer's son as
a Farmer ; but if we give them chances to Bloom, they will improve
Family's condition and make our Nation Brighter.
ABOUT THE WRITER:
Kajal Arora is a first year student of University Institute of Legal Studies, Panjab University. She has won the written debate competition organised by legal daftar.#KUDOS
