SOUTH ASIA - House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrats

2258son was arrested in connection with this human trade. He later was released onbail.In December 1999, domestic media reported that child laborers were being soldin an organized ring at the annual Sonepur cattle fair in Bihar. According to thesereports, children of impoverished families in surrounding districts are brought to thefair and sold. One reporter talked to a buyer, a shopkeeper, who paid $21 (900 rupees)for a 12-year-old child. Persons sometimes are sold into virtual slavery (seeSections 5 and 6.f.).NGO’s such as the Bonded Labor Liberation Front worked to release bonded laborersthroughout the year.d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment.—Article 24of the Constitution and the Child Labor (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986are the principal protections against the exploitation of children in the workplace.Provisions for the protection of children in the workplace also are made in the Beediand Cigar Workers (Condition of Employment) Act of 1966, the Factories Act of1948, the Mines Act of 1952, the Motor Transport Workers Act of 1961, the PlantationsLabor Act of 1951, and the Minimum Wages Act of 1948. The Government prohibitsforced and bonded labor by children, but does not enforce this prohibition effectively(see Section 6.c.).The enforcement of child labor laws is the responsibility of the state governments.Enforcement is inadequate, especially in the informal sector in which most childrenwho work are employed. The continuing prevalence of child labor is attributed tosocial acceptance of the practice, to the failure of the state and federal governmentsto make primary school education compulsory, and ineffective state and federal governmentenforcement of existing laws.Work by children under 14 years of age is barred completely in ‘‘hazardous industries,’’which include passenger, goods, and mail transport by railway; carpet weaving;cinder picking; cleaning of ash pits; cement manufacturing; building and construction;cloth printing; dyeing and weaving; manufacturing of matches, explosives,and fireworks; catering within railway premises or port limits; beedi (cigarette)making; mica cutting and splitting; abattoirs; wool cleaning; printing; cashew andcashew nut descaling and processing; and soldering processes in electronics industries.In January 1999, the Government added 6 occupations and 33 processes tothe list of occupations and processes in which children are barred from working bythe 1986 Child Labor (Prohibition and Regulation) Act. The additions brought thetotals to 13 occupations and 51 processes in which children are prohibited fromworking under the act.In addition to industries that utilize forced or indentured child labor (see Section6.c.), there is evidence that child labor is used in the following industries: Handknottedcarpets; gemstone polishing; leather goods; and sporting goods.In occupations and processes in which child labor is permitted, work by childrenis permissible only for 6 hours between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., with 1 day’s rest weekly.The BJP-led coalition Government continued its predecessors’ plan to eliminatechild labor from hazardous industries and eventually from all industries, but it didnot repeat the previous government’s pledge to accomplish the former by 2000 andthe second by 2010. This program, for which approximately $56.69 million (2.64 billionrupees) has been budgeted since 1992, includes the enhanced enforcement ofchild labor laws, income supplements for families, subsidized school lunches in areaswhich child labor is concentrated, and a public awareness campaign. The Governmentcontinued efforts initiated in 1987 to enhance enforcement of the Child Labor(Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986 and other laws prohibiting and regulatingchild labor. In 1988 the Government started the National Child Labor Project(NCLP) to release children from hazardous work places and provide them with transitionalschooling leading to mainstreaming in regular schools, and other forms ofassistance. In addition government programs assist working children in rural development,women and child development, health, and adult job-creation programs.The NCLP targeted 12 districts in which child labor was prevalent at its inceptionin 1988. The NCLP has grown to cover 91 districts in 10 states. From April 1999To January 31, 145,725 children participated in the NCLP. Since its inception, theprogram is estimated to have helped more than 500,000 children leave work andstart school. During their participation in the NCLP, the children’s families aregiven a small stipend—usually $2.15 to $4.30 (100 to 200 rupees) per month. Nevertheless,government efforts to eliminate child labor have affected only a small fractionof children in the workplace. A 1996 Supreme Court decision raised penaltiesfor employers of children in hazardous industries to $430 (20,000 rupees) and establisheda welfare fund for formerly employed children. According to the South AsianCoalition on Child Servitude (SACCS), authorities are pursuing some 6,000 casesagainst employers. The Supreme Court ruling also has helped make local govern-VerDate 11-MAY-2000 13:46 Sep 20, 2001 Jkt 071555 PO 00000 Frm 00102 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6621 F:\WORK\COUNTRYR\S71555\71555.035 HINTREL1 PsN: HINTREL1