“A child is a
father of man.’’ This famous line is from William Wordsworth poem, The Rainbow, which refers to the
importance of a child for the development of the human race. Childhood is the
time to garner the best physical, intellectual and emotional capacity to
fulfill the duty towards the nation and to one’s own self. However this simple
rule of nature has been crippled by the ever growing menace of child labour.
“Fight for the
future of young lives. Who knows we may find the next President working in a
hotel…”
Child abuse is
one of the most heinous and inhumane crimes done against humanity. It means to maltreat
a child psychologically and emotionally. In the modern era of machine and
technological advancement, children in every country are callously exploited.
In our own country, for making crackers and ‘bidis’
, small kids are engaged because of
their nimble fingers. In fact, India has a high threshold when it comes to
child labour.
These children
need to spend their days in the fantasy world of fairy lands and should weave
the garden of dreams, but the irony of fate is that they are either working in
the dingy cells of factories or working on roadside ‘dhabas’ just to scratch a few coins in their hands!
Can we weed-out
this stigma of the society? Though it is a desirable goal but the eradication of
child labour seems to be a herculean task in the current scenario. The Indian
government is committed to the task of ensuring that no child remains
illiterate, hungry and sans medical care. When this ideal will be achieved is a
million dollar question!
Poverty is the
root cause of all evils. Affording even one square meal a day is like climbing Everest
for the poor and deprived families who then compel their children to work. In
the process, the childhood of these children is stolen, who roll with the situation
and chip off bits of them to prop up the family members economically. Households
may have to suffer pangs of hunger if the children are withdrawn from work.
Let’s have an
action replay. 1954 film, Boot Polish,
had clear glimpses of child labour and also, how children lose out on their childhood.
No doubt, India has so many children but very little childhood! “…nanhe-munne
bachche teri muththi me kya hai?....muththi me hai taqdeer hamari…” is one of the songs in the movie which compel
me to cook a question – is the destiny of the victims of this cruelty really in
their own hands? In the matter-of-fact,
their ‘taqdeer’ is in the hands of
the employers of child labour.
The movie ends
on a happy note as the young protagonists (who acted as cobblers) are adopted
by someone. From their clothes to education to the pettiest of things...everything is taken care of by their new parents. But in real life, not in the reel one, things are not so welcoming
and bright!
how can you write so well, such a henious crime you have committed girl, you must pay for it by writing more and more
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