The State Resource Centre (SRC) on Child Labour in Karnataka is all set to start a bimonthly e-journal within the next three months in another effort to fight the menace of child labour.
"The idea behind the e-Journal is to reach out to the educated population of the state that stands at around 70 per cent, as per the 2001 census. We first want the educated people to get sensitized about the scourge of child labour and then help in eradicating the menace," SRC Deputy Coordinator Basavaraju K said.
"Internet penetration in Bangalore is as high as 80 per cent and in the rest of Karnataka around 60 per cent. So we want to reach out to the educated people of the state through the internet to arrest the spread of child labour", the official added. The centre is planning to have both Kannada and English versions of the e-Journal and hopes to get articles from development professionals working in the field of eradicating child labour.
"The primary aim of the centre is to work as a nodal agency that coordinates programmes being implemented to combat child labour through district societies. The centre will help network different organisations and activists working for child welfare," Basavaraju informed.
According to the 2001 census, there were 12.7 million working children in India in the 5-14 year age group, with Uttar Pradesh recording the highest number at 1.93 million, closely followed by Andhra Pradesh with 1.36 million. Karnataka recorded 0.82 million child labourers, making it the seventh highest state in the country.
However, child rights activists say India currently has around 30 million child labourers. It has been more than two years since child labour was banned in India. But the practice is still on.
