Since India's independence, child labour has been a major issue. According to a 2001 census, out of a total children's population of 25.2 crore, approximately 1.26 crore children aged between 5 and 14 years are engaged in child labour in India.
Additionally, between 2004-05, the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) conducted a survey which reflected that approximately 90.5 lakh were involved in child labour, which dropped to 49.84 lakh in their 2009-10 survey.
While around 12 lakh children are estimated to work in dangerous jobs and industries covered by the Child Labour Act (18 occupations and 65 processes), the good news is that the overall number of working children in India has significantly decreased.
As per the 2001 census, here's the list of the hazardous occupations in which children were engaged:
| Sl. No. | Name of Occupation & Processes | No. of Children Employed |
| 1. | Pan, Bidi & Cigarettes | 252574 |
| 2. | Construction | 208833 |
| 3. | Domestic Workers | 185505 |
| 4. | Spinning/weaving | 128984 |
| 5. | Brick-kilns, tiles | 84972 |
| 6. | Dhabas/Restaurants/Hotels/Motels | 70934 |
| 7. | Auto-workshop, vehicle repairs | 49893 |
| 8. | Gem-cutting, Jewellery | 37489 |
| 9. | Carpet-making | 32647 |
| 10. | Ceramic | 18894 |
| 11. | Agarbatti, Dhoop & Detergent making | 13583 |
| 12. | Others* | 135162 |
| Total | - | 1219470 |
Source: Labour.gov.in
List of Constitutional Provisions Prohibiting the Employment of Children?
Here's the list of the constitutional provisions that prohibit child labour in India:
i) Article 21A: Right to Education
The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the ages of 6 to 14 years in such manner as the State, by law, may determine.
ii) Article 24: Prohibition of Employment of Children in Factories, etc.
No child below the age of fourteen years shall be employed in work in any factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment.
iii) Article 39: The State Shall, in Particular, Direct its Policy Towards Securing
(e) that the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age or strength.
(f) that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth
are protected against exploitation and against moral and material abandonment
iv) Article 45: Provision for Early Childhood Care and education to Children Below the Age of 6 Years.
All children, until they're six years old, should receive early care and education from the State.
What are the Laws Governing Child Labour and Employment in India?
Here are the laws that restrict child labour and employment in India:
i) Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986
Under the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, created in 1986, defines a "child" as anyone under 14 years old.
It bans children from working in 18 specific jobs and 65 different types of work that are considered dangerous or harmful. A special committee exists to recommend adding even more jobs to this banned list.
Occupations Prohibited for Child Labour (Part A: Non-Industrial Activity)
| Sl. No. | Occupation |
| 1. | Transport of passengers, goods or mail by railways |
| 2. | Cinder picking, clearing of an ash pit or building operation in the railway premises |
| 3. | Work in a catering establishment at a railway station, involving the movement of a vendor or employee |
| 4. | Work relating to the construction of a railway station or near railway lines |
| 5. | A port authority within the limits of any port |
| 6. | Selling of crackers and fireworks in shops with temporary licenses |
| 7. | Abattoirs/Slaughterhouses |
| 8. | Automobile workshops and garages |
| 9. | Foundries |
| 10. | Handling of toxic or inflammable substances, or explosives |
| 11. | Handloom and power loom industry |
| 12. | Mines (underground and underwater) and collieries |
| 13. | Plastic units and fibreglass workshops |
| 14. | Domestic workers or servants |
| 15. | Dhabas (roadside eateries), restaurants, hotels, motels, tea shops, resorts, spas or other recreational centres |
| 16. | Diving |
| 17. | Caring for elephants |
| 18. | Working in the circus |
Processes Prohibited for Child Labour (Part B: Industrial Activity)
| Sl. No. | Process |
| 1. | Beedi-making |
| 2. | Carpet-weaving, including preparatory and incidental processes |
| 3. | Cement manufacture, including the bagging of cement |
| 4. | Cloth printing, dyeing, and weaving, including preparatory and incidental processes |
| 5. | Manufacture of matches, explosives, and fireworks |
| 6. | Mica-cutting and splitting |
| 7. | Shellac manufacture |
| 8. | Soap manufacture |
| 9. | Tanning |
| 10. | Wool-cleaning |
| 11. | Building and construction industry, including the processing and polishing of granite stones |
| 12. | Manufacture of slate pencils (including packing) |
| 13. | Manufacture of products from agate |
| 14. | Manufacturing processes using toxic metals and substances (e.g., lead, mercury, manganese, chromium, cadmium, benzene, pesticides, asbestos) |
| 15. | "Hazardous processes", as defined in Sec. 2 (cb), and 'dangerous operation' in rules under section 87 of the Factories Act, 1948 |
| 16. | Printing as defined in Section 2(k)(iv) of the Factories Act, 1948 |
| 17. | Cashew and cashew nut descaling and processing |
| 18. | Soldering processes in electronic industries |
| 19. | ‘Agarbatti’ manufacturing |
| 20. | Automobile repairs and maintenance, including welding, lathe work, dent beating, and painting |
| 21. | Brick kilns and Roof tiles units |
| 22. | Cotton ginning and processing, and the production of hosiery goods |
| 23. | Detergent manufacturing |
| 24. | Fabrication workshops (ferrous and non-ferrous) |
| 25. | Gem cutting and polishing |
| 26. | Handling of chromite and manganese ores |
| 27. | Jute textile manufacture and coir making |
| 28. | Lime Kilns and Manufacture of Lime |
| 29. | Lock Making |
| 30. | Manufacturing processes having exposure to lead (e.g., smelting, welding lead-painted metal, plumbing, cable making, type founding, car assembling, shot making, lead glass blowing) |
| 31. | Manufacture of cement pipes, cement products, and other related work |
| 32. | Manufacture of glass, glassware (including bangles, fluorescent tubes, bulbs, etc.) |
| 33. | Manufacture of dyes and dye stuff |
| 34. | Manufacturing or handling of pesticides and insecticides |
| 35. | Manufacturing or processing and handling of corrosive and toxic substances, metal cleaning, photo engraving, and soldering processes in the electronics industry |
| 36. | Manufacturing of burning coal and coal briquettes |
| 37. | Manufacturing of sports goods involves exposure to synthetic materials, chemicals, and leather |
| 38. | Moulding and processing of fibreglass and plastic |
| 39. | Oil extraction and refinery |
| 40. | Paper making |
| 41. | Potteries and the ceramic industry |
| 42. | Polishing, moulding, cutting, welding, and manufacturing of brass goods in all forms |
| 43. | Processes in agriculture where tractors, threshing, and harvesting machines are used and chaff is cutting |
| 44. | Saw mill – all processes |
| 45. | Sericulture processing |
| 46. | Skinning, dyeing, and processes for the manufacturing of leather and leather products |
| 47. | Stone breaking and stone crushing |
| 48. | Tobacco processing, including the manufacturing of tobacco, tobacco paste, and the handling of tobacco in any form |
| 49. | Tyre making, repairing, re-treading, and graphite beneficiation |
| 50. | Utensil making, polishing, and metal buffing |
| 51. | ‘Zari’ making (all processes) |
| 52. | Electroplating |
| 53. | Graphite powdering and incidental processing |
| 54. | Grinding or glazing of metals |
| 55. | Diamond cutting and polishing |
| 56. | Extraction of slate from mines |
| 57. | Rag picking and scavenging |
| 58. | Processes involving exposure to excessive heat (e.g., working near a furnace) and cold |
| 59. | Mechanised fishing |
| 60. | Food Processing |
| 61. | Beverage Industry |
| 62. | Timber handling and loading |
| 63. | Mechanical Lumbering |
| 64. | Warehousing |
| 65. | Processes involving exposure to free silica (e.g., slate, pencil industry, stone grinding, slate stone mining, stone quarries, agate industry) |
For any jobs not banned, the Act sets rules for how children can be employed, aiming to protect them.
Penalties for Violating the Law
If someone hires a child in a banned occupation or process, they can face serious consequences:
- Jail time: From three months up to one year.
- Fine: Between ₹10,000 and ₹20,000.
- Both jail time and a fine.
Who Enforces the Law?
- Both the Central (national) and State (regional) governments are responsible for making sure this law is followed.
- The Central Government handles enforcement for workplaces it controls, like railways, major ports, mines, or oil fields.
- For all other workplaces, the State Government is in charge of enforcing the law.
Other Laws
- Mines Act, 1952: The Minimum age of a person to be employed in a mine is eighteen years as specified under sub-section (1) of Section 40 of the Mines Act, 1952.
- Section 45 of the Mines Act, 1952 prohibits the presence of any person below 18 years of age in any part of the mine above ground where any operation connected with or incidental to any mining operation is being carried on.
- Factories Act, 1948 prohibits employment of child who has not completed 14 years
- The Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 prohibits children less than 14 years of age from going to or being carried to sea to work in any capacity on any ship, subject to certain exceptions.
- The Motor Transporters Act, 1961 prohibits the employment of children less than 14 years old in any motor transport undertaking.
- The Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966 prohibits the employment of children less than 14 years of age in any industrial premises manufacturing beedi or cigars.
- The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act 1976 prohibits the employment of any person, including children.
- The Explosive Act, 1984 prohibits the employment of children below the age of 18 years.
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