Q. Consider the following statements:
1.Article 24 of the Indian Constitution prohibits employment of children below the age of 14 years in any factory, mine or other hazardous employment.
2.As per the Child Labour Act 2016, employment of children is prohibited in both hazardous and non-hazardous occupations.
3.As per the 2011 Census, Bihar has the highest incidence of child labour in India.
4.PENCIL (Platform for Effective Enforcement of No Child Labour) portal monitor and track child labour cases.
How many of the statements given above are correct?
Explanation –
Statements 1, 2 and 4 are correct. Article 24 of the Indian Constitution prohibits employment of children below the age of 14 years in any factory, mine or other hazardous employment. The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 prohibits employment of children below 14 years in all occupations and processes, both hazardous and non-hazardous. However, it allows children to help in family enterprises and work as artists, provided it does not affect their education. The PENCIL portal launched by the government monitors and tracks child labour cases for effective enforcement of laws against child labour.
Statement 3 is incorrect. According to the 2011 Census data, Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of child workers among states followed by Bihar.
Source: AIR
