A study by Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) has revealed that 94 per cent of children involved in child labour in Delhi work in illegal factory units like the one in Anaj Mandi that caught fire on Sunday.
The organisation’s revelations come after 43 people lost their lives to the fire on Sunday, of which, at least five were minors.
According to the study released on Monday, December 9, BBA, an NGO under the Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, has rescued 8,918 children from different industrial units since 2005. Of this, 8,408 children were rescued from illegal factory units.
“The data shows that the problem of illegal industries running in residential areas without requisite approvals continues to persist and has a fairly large dimension,” the study said.
The building where the fire broke out on Sunday in Delhi, housed illegal manufacturing units, despite it being in a residential area.
“Children are pushed to work in cramped, dingy, spaces that are inhospitable, mostly in residential areas in unauthorised colonies. In such areas, there often are no safety exits to deal with emergencies like a fire,” Sampurna Behura, BBA spokesperson, was quoted in The Times Of India.
The study added that, as the industries work on a low budget, they employ child labour at low wages to cut costs.
“These industries are run on a shoestring budget. To cut costs, they indulge in tax avoidance and employ child labour at low wages, who come from their native places to earn bread and butter for themselves and their families. These children are made to work in cramped and unsanitary conditions for long hours to maximise the output,” the study said.
The data revealed that the children rescued by BBA belonged to different states and had been forced to migrate. Of the 8,408 children rescued from illegal factory units, 54 per cent were from Bihar, 22 per cent from Uttar Pradesh, 7 per cent, from West Bengal, 3 per cent from Jharkhand, 6 per cent from Delhi and 1 per cent each from Madhya Pradesh and Assam.
