LAGATAR24 NETWORK
Deoghar, Aug 3: The Deoghar district administration is taking action to protect young children who are frequently seen selling toys near tourist and religious sites from being forced into child labour.
Since the government schools are closed during Shrawani Mela for a long time, many school-going minors have been found selling photographs of Gods and other things in the shops around the Baba Baidyanath Temple.
These children are used as helping aid by street vendors outside the fair location. Even their parents keep them at the shops for help sometimes.
However, this year, the local administration has taken a pragmatic approach to saving these kids from exploitation. A task force has been geared up under ‘Project Panchhi’ for this purpose.
Talking to Lagatar24.com correspondent, Deoghar DPRO Ravi Kumar said that the job of the task force is to locate these children as well as to bail them out of exploitation. “Not only this but further their parents are contacted and counselled too,” the DPRO claimed.
A member of the DC cell, sharing the plans of district administration with this correspondent, said that a meeting with the district labour department will be held to include it in the mission.
Till now, 12 children have been rescued and produced before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and parents of 36 minors have been counselled under the project.
Such parents are made to take informal undertaking for not to take their minor children’s help for work in future.
The district administration is assisted by local NGOs. Thirty members of these NGOs are involved in the search for such minors.
