The Union Minister for Labour and Employment, Bandaru Dattatreya, has promised to convene an inter-State meeting to work out a time-bound plan to prevent child trafficking.
Reacting to the rescue of hundreds of children from Bihar, who were working in the bangle-making industry in Hyderabad, Mr. Dattatreya said that the Ministry would coordinate with the States of Bihar and Telangana to rehabilitate every child rescued by the Hyderabad police recently. He said the government was committed to ensuring that all children enjoy the right to education and it would be done with a sense of urgency with respect to the children rescued. During the recent raids conducted by the police and Labour Department of Telangana, nearly 400 children were rescued from the bangle-making industry in the city. The Minister said it was unfortunate that the industry, famous for crafted bangles in the country and abroad, had employed children for the work. “This is totally unacceptable,” he said.
“A monthly sum of Rs. 2,000 and Rs. 3,000 is paid to the parents, depending upon the age and working ability of the child,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) V. Satyanarayana told The Hindu .
The children, hailing from poor families, were denied proper food and accommodation and at times fell ill due to lack of hygiene. At Amannagar, Yaseen Pahelwan rented out his three-storied building to a bangle-making unit and about 150 children were staying on the premises. Closed circuit cameras were installed in the workshops to keep a watch on the children.
Meanwhile, the district administration prepared a profile of the children and sent it to Bihar after officials expressed their willingness to reunite them with their parents. “The children will leave for Bihar by train shortly,” District Child Protection Officer, Hyderabad, Mohd Imtiyaz Raheem said. “We will file the charge-sheet against the employers under labour law in the court,” Joint Commissioner of Labour, Hyderabad, E. Gangadhar said. The children are suffering from various skin diseases due to exposure to hazardous chemicals.