Jajpur: Six child labourers rescued

Jajpur: Jajpur district administration on Wednesday rescued six children who were forced to work as bonded labourers at various units in Nahaka and Chorda areas under Vyas Nagar municipality. The rescued children, aged between 12 and 14 years, belongto Scheduled Tribe (ST) and are school dropouts. They were engaged in fish scaling, cutting and selling and working in mutton shops for wages of Rs 150-Rs 200 per day. Collector P Anvesha Reddy had asked the Jajpur district administration to rescue the children.

Acting on a tip-off, the authorities formed a special task force comprising the District Child Protection Officer (DCPO), local police, revenue officials and Child hipline coordinator.The task force conducted raids at several fish and mutton shops in Nahaka and Chorda areas and rescued the children.

“The rescued children have been currently lodged in a shelter home and will undergo counselling and rehabilitation to facilitate their social mainstreaming,” DCPO Niranjan Kar said, adding that legal proceedings will be initiated against the employer.The district administration has urged the public to remain vigilant and report any cases of child labour or exploitation.

“We will continue to monitor the areas closely and are committed to eradicating child and bonded labourers in the region. An action taken report will be submitted to the district magistrate for further review and necessary follow-up”, said the DCPO.

It was the second such incident in the district in the last 12 days. The Jajpur district administration had on October 18 rescued six children, aged between 11 and 14 years, who were forced to work as bonded labourers.