Nepal: The brick factories within the Shivaraj Municipality of Kapilvastu have been monitored. Monitoring of long-running Five Star Brick Industry, Popular Brick Industry, SMV, and Panchakanya Brick Industry has found that there are child laborers.
Since there are mostly Indian workers in the industries, it can be estimated that the children who came with the workers were used as laborers. Shivraj Nagar Chief Netra Raj Adhikari, Administrative Officer Ganesh Prasad Aryal, Dalit Human Rights Monitoring Committee Chairperson Mina Pariyar, Trade Association Kapilvastu Chairperson Mahadev Pokharel, Chairperson of Shivraj Municipality Ward No. 10 Manju Mishra, police, and journalists were also monitored on Tuesday.
Amjad Khan’s 16-year-old son Mohammad Karam Khan and 15-year-old Ruksan Khan, who came from Bareilly, India with their families for wages, were found working in the popular brick industry with their families. Although Karam Khan is studying in India, he has left his studies to work as a bricklayer. His father Amjad said that he had brought his children with him as all the families had to leave home for employment.
The children of Indian workers live together in the brick industry and they work with their parents. Children between the ages of 7 and 16 are found working in the brick industry. It has been found that children are also working in the Five Star Brick Industry and Panchakanya Brick Industry. During the monitoring, it was found that there were no child laborers in the DMC brick industry.
Similarly, Mina Pariyar, chairperson of the Dalit Human Rights Monitoring Committee, said that she has been conducting public awareness campaign on the reduction of child labor and education in the brick industry. Stating that there were 182 child laborers in various brick industries in Shivaraj Municipality last year, the campaign has reduced the number to 95 this year. Stating that her organization has been working for the education of the children of the workers, Pariyar said that the concerned bodies should also pay attention to the education of the children of the workers working in the brick industry.
Last year, there were 778 child laborers, including Indians, in the brick factories in the three local levels of the district, Shivraj Municipality, Maharajgunj Municipality, and Buddhabhumi Municipality said Pariyar. She said that the campaign is being carried out with the objective of supporting their education.
Chief of Shivraj Municipality Netra Raj Adhikari
He said that discussions will be held with businessmen and stakeholders for the education of child laborers working in the brick industry. He said that he has also instructed the brick manufacturers not to employ children.
Even though the government has a legal provision forbidding the use of children in child labor, in the brick industry, violating the government, rules, and regulations, the businessmen have resorted to child labor in making bricks.
Ram Abatar Chaudhary
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