Under the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986, the Indian Government prohibits employment of children below the age of 14 years.

However, millions of children in remote areas of India are trafficked and forced into bonded labour, and subjected to cruelty under the banner of ‘work’.

This ‘World Day Against Child Labour’, we recognise the work of five individuals who are releasing minors from child labour and creating a world where they can play, laugh and learn.

1. Constable Than Singh Police Constable Than Singh is helping children in slums of Delhi escape a life of crime and labour. He runs a free school – ‘Than Singh ki Pathshala’ – where he teaches more than 80 children to help them further enrol in government schools.

2. Neeraj Murmu Once a child labourer herself, Jharkhand-based Neeraj has saved 20 children from working in hazardous mica mines that exposed them to respiratory diseases.

He also runs a local school ‘Kailash Satyarthi’ that has educated over 200 impoverished and rescued children.

3. Shachi Singh The Charbagh railway station in Lucknow is the first station in the country to be declared child labour-free, thanks to all the good work done by Shachi and her Ehsaas team.

Her organisation has rescued and given a home to over 100 children, once living at the  Lucknow station and on the streets. Efforts were made to rehabilitate these kids through education, vocational training, and counselling.

4. Amar Lal Once a child labourer in Rajasthan, Amar was rescued from a quarry by Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi. He is now fighting child exploitation as a lawyer.

He identifies villages where children don’t go to schools, where child marriage is rampant, conducts surveys and rescue operations, and takes up cases to defend children wrongly accused of offences. He has taken up over 250 cases so far.

5. IAS Himanshu Nagpal He spearheads ‘Mission Muskaan’ that has reunited over 700 lost children living in the ghats of Varanasi, railway stations, and temples with their families across India.

After identifying and rescuing children, who are in the age group of five to 18 years, they are given shelter at child welfare homes till they are reunited with their families.