Bengaluru: To usher in World Day against Child Labour, Child Rights and You (CRY), has undertaken week-long awareness programmes, leading up to June 12, across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The programmes were in tandem to the collective commitment and endeavour to end child labour, a statement from CRY read.
“It’s extremely important to create adequate livelihood opportunities at the community levels so that children are not pushed to work by their parents. But, it’s difficult to arrive at a tailor-made plan until and unless we know the exact magnitude of the scenario. A robust and updated database of the current status of child labour will help address the situation and will go a long way towards eradicating the problem,” says John Roberts, the Regional Director of CRY (South).
“Though significant progress in reducing child labour in the country was made during the last decade, COVID-19 Pandemic reversed that trend as it devastated economies and plunged families into poverty. As a result, great number of children were forced out of schools and thrust into child labour,” John explained.
In this scenario it is crucial that we strengthen child protection mechanisms, enhance access to quality education, and promote social support systems that uplift families and children out of poverty, thus breaking the cycle of child exploitation, he added, elaborating the way forward.
According to him, CRY works with an aim to make 553 villages in which it is operating in the four Sothern states including Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, child labour free in the next three years. CRY also urged everyone to come forward and collectively pledge to intensify efforts, thus ensuring that every child in South India enjoys their right to a safe, nurturing, and supportive environment.
