why is child labour punishable offence? give reason?
Answers
Answer:
Employing children (below 14 years) has been prohibited in all occupations and processes, with certain limited exceptions.
Children are now allowed to help family or family enterprises in non-hazardous occupations after school hours or during vacations.
Children are also allowed to work in the audio-visual entertainment industry, subject to compliance with prescribed conditions.
Employing adolescents (between 14 and 18 years) has been prohibited in hazardous occupations and processes.
Employing children or adolescents in contravention of the law has been made a cognizable offence.
Punishment for employers has been enhanced. Punishment for parents/ guardians have been relaxed.
India's law on child labour has been amended to ensure that (i) education of children between the age group of 6 - 14 years is not compromised and (ii) the law is brought in line with the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 ("Right to Education Act"). As a result of the enactment of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 ("2016 Amendment Act")1, the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 is now re-titled as the 'Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986' ("Child Labour Act"), in order to reflect its expanded scope and coverage.
India is a signatory to the 'United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child' which aims at protecting the interests and rights of children.2 Although, the International Labor Organization has enacted Conventions such as the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 and Worst forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 with the objective of eliminating child labour, India has not yet ratified the aforementioned conventions3.
Important Features
The important revisions to the Child Labour Act as a result of the 2016 Amendment Act are as follows:
Definition of 'child': The 2016 Amended Act has brought the law in sync with the Right to Education Act by amending the definition of 'child' to mean a person who has not completed 14 years or such age as specified under the Right to Education Act, whichever is higher. This definition however continues to remain different from the definition of 'child' as per the Factories Act, 1948.
Definition of 'adolescent' introduced: 'Adolescent' has been defined to mean a person who has completed his 14th year but not completed his 18th year. This definition is however slightly different from the definition of 'adolescent' as per the Factories Act, 1948.
Prohibition of child labour: A complete ban has been imposed on employing children, except in the following two cases:
Children are allowed to help in his/her family or family enterprise(s) provided that (i) such enterprise is not involved in hazardous processes and (ii) the work is carried out after school hours or during vacations.
Children are allowed to work in the audio-visual entertainment industry including advertisement, films, television serials or any such other entertainment or sports activities except circus subject to (i) compliance with prescribed conditions and adoption of safety measures, and (ii) the work does not affect the school education of the child.
Prohibition on employment of adolescents: New provision prohibiting employment of adolescents in hazardous occupations and processes introduced.
Child labour made a cognizable offence: Any offence committed by an employer which is punishable under the Child Labour Act has been made a cognizable offence. Accordingly, the authorities can file a first information report and commence investigations into the offence without a court order and can arrest without a warrant.
Punishments for contravention enhanced: While the punishment for employers has been significantly enhanced, the punishment for parents / guardians has been relaxed. Please see the table below for a comparative on the punishment before and after the 2016 Amended Act.