Children and Work

India has all along followed a proactive policy in the matter of tackling the problem of child labour. India has always stood for constitutional, statutory and developmental measures that are required to eliminate child labour. The framers of the Indian Constitution consciously incorporated relevant provisions in the Constitution to secure compulsory universal elementary education as well as labour protection for children. Labour Commissions and Committees have gone into the problems of child labour and made extensive recommendations.

India's policy on child labour has evolved over the years against this backdrop. The present regime of laws relating to Child Labour have a pragmatic foundation and are consistent with the International Labour Conference resolution of 1979.

The policy of the government is to ban employment of children below the age of fourteen years in factories, mines and hazardous employment and to regulate the working conditions of children in other employment. The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 seeks to achieve this basic objective. Through a notification dated May 26, 1993, the working conditions of children have been regulated in all employment which are not prohibited under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act. Following up on a preliminary notification issued on October 5, 1993, the government has also prohibited employment of children in occupation processes like abattoirs/slaughter houses, printing, cashewnut descaling and processing, and soldering.