Pulwama, Oct 13: Authorities have carried out a series of coordinated operations in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district to combat child labour and safeguard the rights of young children.
The operations were conducted by the Child Welfare Committee Mission Vatsalya, Child Protection Unit Mission Vatsalya, Labour Department, and police in various areas of Pulwama district over the past few days. During these operations, authorities discovered several children working as labourers in various shops and promptly rescued them.
Officials said that this operation was conducted in response to the Supreme Court’s Suo-Moto Cognizance concerning children in street situations.
“The apex court has issued directives to states and union territories to identify, rescue, and rehabilitate children in such dire circumstances,” the officials said.
Following these directives, the Director of Mission Vatsalya in Jammu and Kashmir instructed the Child Welfare Committee Pulwama to initiate a rescue operation for children facing street situations and engaged in child labour.
Multiple children were successfully rescued during the operation, and cases related to the exploitation of child labourers were expeditiously forwarded to the relevant government departments for necessary action, the Director said.
Arshid Rahim, Chairperson of the Child Welfare Committee Pulwama, said the objective of this initiative is to identify and aid children commonly known as “street children.” He elaborated on the categories of street children, saying, “Street children can be categorized into three groups. The first group includes those for whom the street is their only home, but such cases are not prevalent here. The second category consists of children from families who work and live on the streets, and these are the children we have rescued. After rescuing them, our plan is to rehabilitate them following the appropriate procedures and secure their future.”
This operation was conducted in Pulwama and Pampore towns and is set to extend to other towns in the district in the coming days, as confirmed by officials.
