Child Labour

CHILD LABOUR BUSTED!

On Wednesday (02.07.2014) afternoon Don Bosco Nivas Shelter Home out reach staff at railway station found two children found wandering at the station.  They were dressed in shabby clothes and looked tired. They also had injuries on their body. We provided food and clothes and medical and while counseling them on the  same day, they (Anburaj aged 14 and Kartheesh aged 11) revealed that they were trafficked to work at Aluva-based JMS sweet shop. They were subjected to beatings on legs and faces and other physical abuse at the Sweet Company.

Anburaj said that more than 40 boys were employed at the unit and some of them had escaped when the unit shifted from its earlier place. They were brought to Aluva a few days ago by an agent Mr. Abraham by convincing them that they were being taken for a tour of Kerala.  Anburaj told that the name of the owner is Emmi (Emmanuel later police identified). They had beaten the children.  It is learnt that the children were at the factory for five days before finally escaping.

On Wednesday afternoon our staff contacted their family over telephone and verified their identities.  Maria Selvam mother of Anburaj and Chithra mother of Kartheesh reached CHILDLINE office on the same night.  They claimed that a neighbor called Abraham had offered to take the children for a housewarming ceremony in Kerala and promised to bring them back a couple of days later.

We passed the information to Eranakulam CHILDLINE workers and they traced the Sweet shop.  We intervened with the media and the police to trace and arrest the culprits. Aluva Police raided a confectionary unit in Aluva and arrested its owner and his two sons for employing minor boys from Tamil Nadu at the unit. The arrested -Immanuel (47), owner of JMS Sweets, Kunnatheri, near Aluva and his sons James (20) and Prince (18) of Tiruchendur in Tamil Nadu ­ have been booked under the Juvenile Justice Act.

The children were produced before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) on Friday 04.07.14.  CWC looked into the matter seriously. The mothers of these boys did not have any documents to prove that the two were indeed their sons.  The children will remain with Don Bosco Nivas till the required documents are produced by the parents.

The commitment of Don Bosco Veedu Society to the children at risk has brought many children like Anburaj and Kartheesh freedom from suffering and a life of dignity and worth. We hope that the state wide mass media coverage on the incident will bring in more awareness on the problems that our children face as well as deter people from harming innocent children.