The State of Child Labour in India
According to a report by the
International Labour Organisation
(ILO), an estimated 10.1 million children aged between 5 to 14 years are engaged in labour in India. This figure is based on the data from the Census of 2011.
As per the 2011 Census, the total child population in India in the age group of 5-14 years is approximately 259.6 million. Out of these, 10.1 million (3.9% of the total child population) are engaged in some form of work, either as a ‘main worker’ or as a ‘marginal worker’. Moreover, over 42.7 million children in India are not attending school.
However, there has been a decline of 2.6 million in the number of children involved in child labour between the Census of 2001 and 2011. The following table provides statistics for the same:
|
Year
|
Percentage of working children (5-14)
|
Total number of working children
(5-14) (in millions)
|
|
Rural
|
Urban
|
Total
|
Rural
|
Urban
|
Total
|
|
2001
|
5.9
|
2.1
|
5.0
|
11.4
|
1.3
|
12.7
|
|
2011
|
4.3
|
2.9
|
3.9
|
8.1
|
2.0
|
10.1
|
The 2011 Census also reveals that five major states in India account for 55% of the total number of child labourers in the country. The table below provides a detailed breakdown:
|
States
|
Percentage
|
Numbers (In million)
|
|
Uttar Pradesh
|
21.5
|
2.18
|
|
Bihar
|
10.7
|
1.09
|
|
Rajasthan
|
8.4
|
0.85
|
|
Maharashtra
|
7.2
|
0.73
|
|
Madhya Pradesh
|
6.9
|
0.70
|
To learn more about the
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
, a UN agency that provides developmental and humanitarian aid to children globally, you can visit the provided link.
It's crucial to understand the different categories of child labour to grasp the full extent of this issue:
-
Child Labour:
This category includes children who are employed in factories, workshops, mines, and the service sector, including domestic labour, either for pay or without any remuneration.
-
Street Children:
