GUWAHATI, June 8 - In the run-up to the World Day Against Child Labour on June 12, the Assam State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (ASCPCR) organised an interactive session on child labour with a special focus on this year�s theme �Children should not work in fields but on dreams�, here on Friday.
The session was attended by various stakeholders including police, district administration, Legal Services Authority, labour department, education department, Childline, social welfare department and civil society organisations working towards protection of rights of children.
ASCPCR Chairperson Dr Sunita Changkakati in her speech, mentioned the need for greater convergence among stakeholders in terms of combating child labour. While Assam has been proactive in catering to the issues of children, there is still a need for greater convergence among line departments when it comes to addressing issues of child rights protection and rehabilitation of affected children.
Rosy Taba, Member, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), New Delhi, in her address spoke about the need for inculcating a sense of greater responsibility in society in terms of responding to children who are vulnerable and need immediate care and protection. Taba, who is the first north-easterner in the NCPCR, opined that in order to protect children from exploitation, all stakeholders must respond swiftly instead of waiting for response from their counterparts.
Among other guests and dignitaries present were Surendra Tadkhelkar, social activist; Geetanjali Doley, Additional SP, CID Assam; Satya Nath Sharma, Member Secretary, State Legal Services Authority and Gunajit Kashyap, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup Metro.
The session ended on a positive note highlighting policy-level strategies as well as direct action-based strategies for future implementation to combat child labour.
Apart from the session with government and civil society stakeholders, ASCPCR is working to translate the standard operating procedure on child labour in vernacular medium and run an FM campaign from June 10 to 16 on child rights-based issues.
