Supreme Court Directs Centre To Set Up Special Cell For Child Labour Law Enforcement

The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to create a special cell to oversee implementation of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016, and ensure its provisions are enforced strictly. A bench of Justices SVN Bhatti and NV Anjaria passed the direction while hearing an older child labour petition.

The bench also directed the Ministry of Women and Child Development to issue instructions to enforcement agencies through the respective chief secretaries of the states. It said the original prayer in the petition no longer needed further consideration after changes in the law.

“With a view to preserving the rights of children/adolescents, we direct the second respondent to constitute a special cell, continue to monitor the implementation of the provisions of the Act and also issue direction to the enforcing agencies through the respective chief secretaries of the State, as amended through the Act No.35 of 2016,” the bench said.

Amendment And Ban

The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016, or Act No. 35 of 2016, revised the principal Child Labour Act of 1986 and took effect on September 1, 2016.

The amendment brought in a complete ban on child employment. It also barred the employment of children below 14 years in all occupations and processes.

The plea was filed in 2009 and challenged the constitutional validity of the proviso to Section 3 of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986.

That proviso had allowed child labour in the hazardous process of beedi rolling in workshops as part of family labour and in government-aided or government-funded schools. The petition also sought directions to the Centre to provide educational facilities and two mid day meals to such child workers.

Court Hearing Details

Advocates Prashant Bhushan and Pranav Sachdeva appeared for petitioner NGO Health For Millions. During the hearing, counsel for the Centre informed the bench that the petitioner’s grievance had been substantially addressed by the amendment to the parent Act and that the petition no longer survived for consideration.

The top court said, “We are of the view that the prayer made in the writ petition does not survive for further consideration, but what remains to be taken note of is giving complete and full effect to the changes introduced by way of amendment Act No. 35 of 2016.”

It also said, “Keeping in perspective the above brief narrative, we are persuaded not to examine the prayers as made but we take note of the amendment Act No. 35 of 2016 and note that it shall be the responsibility of the respondent(s) to ensure complete and strict compliance with the mandate of the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, including the amended provisions.”

(With PTI Inputs)