Post-sting op, Govt raids factories employing kids

NO CHILD'S PLAY: Close to 70 children working in zari units were rescued in Delhi.

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New Delhi: Just days after international retailer GAP was tainted by child labour in a sting operation conducted by an international newspaper, officials are now cracking down on manufacturing units in the Capital.

It was an unusually chaotic day in South Delhi's Khanpur area. Residents looked on curiously as authorities raided homes in an attempt to rescue child labourers. In the end, close to 70 children working in zari units were rescued and most of them were stunned by what was happening.

“I came here three years ago,” a child labour said, while another one chipped in saying that he “likes studying and playing more.”

Zari units require small and thin fingers, thus children become the ideal workers. Some of their older co-workers wondered why the children weren't being allowed to work at all.

“Why shouldn't they start working? I think its okay to start working at 10? How will he earn otherwise?” a worker, whose name has been withheld, said.

Most of the rescued children are from Bihar and West Bengal, who had come to Delhi looking for work.

“After rescuing them, we will now focus on their rehabilitation,” Deputy Labour Commissioner, South Zone, Sushil Yadav said.

While these children burn away their childhood working in tough conditions some of them are also the sole breadwinners of their families back home.

So, by taking away their livelihood at this point, does it push them further towards poverty? What is the overall solution to this growing problem? That is a question that the society will have to decide.