39 child labourers rescued in Delhi

New Delhi, April 26 (IANS) Thirty-nine child labourers were rescued from zari (embroidery), bag making and electrical goods manufacturing units in the capital Tuesday, an NGO said.

NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA), which assisted the police and the labour department in the raid, said in a statement: 'The children were rescued from Govindpuri in south and Narela in north Delhi. They hail from various places of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh'.

'The children were found working in inhuman conditions without proper ventilation, safe drinking water, adequate food and any health facilities. Except for those who were rescued from dhabas none of the other kids were ever paid. All of them were forced to work for more than 12 hours a day and seven days a week,' it added.

Kailash Satyarthi, founder of BBA said: 'Despite clear directions from the Delhi High Court, state authorities have failed to act upon their own commitment. The Delhi government had agreed through an affidavit to rescue at least 500 child labourers each month but it has not yet happened during the whole year.'

'We have identified approximately 2,500 child labourers in Delhi but the least the authorities can do is take action. Along with the district task force conducted rescue operations on the basis of the pending complaints, till now only 146 children could be rescued,' he added.