Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore   

Abolition of child labour: Coimbatore district to focus on new sectors

M. Soundariya Preetha

COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore district administration will focus on abolition of child labour in roadside eateries, hotels, domestic chores and teashops.

The Centre has added employment of children as domestic help or servants at dhabas, restaurants, hotels, motels, tea shops, resorts or other recreational centres to the list of occupations prohibited under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 with effect from October 10.

According to the Project Officer, District Rural Development Agency, S. Jayakumar, the Kovai CLASS has identified about 300 child workers in the district this year in different segments. Of them, 192 have been enrolled in the 16 special centres in the district. Counselling was on for the other workers.

Since 2001, the Kovai CLASS identified about 10,000 child workers and rehabilitated 9,300 of them in special schools. It also helped about 5,700 children join the regular schools.

Mr. Jayakumar said 27 special squads were formed last year and following regular raids, the number of child workers had come down. "It has been completely abolished in hazardous industries. With increasing awareness among the units, it is almost nil in registered industries in the district."

With the Centre adding two more categories in the list of occupations that should not have child labour, the focus would now be on these two areas apart from the regular sectors covered. Raids were conducted in Coimbatore and Tirupur on Tuesday.

The focus would also be on helping the identified child workers join the regular schools, he added.

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