Children pay the price

KOCHI: With Kochi on a development mode and more and more labourers flowing   in from other state to do the jobs, there has been a substantial increase in the number of cases registered under the Juvenile Act. Records  with the Social Welfare Committee say that the cases have increased by more than 400 percentage and the majority of them are of child labour.In 2009, when there was only one case registered under the Juvenile Justice  Act, by 2010 the number has increased to six.  In 2011, there was an alarming rise with 40 cases being registered in this connection. While 37 cases were related to child labour, the remaining were of sexual abuse and torture. “The increase in the number of cases is the result of the enforcement  activities carried out by the police. Several raids were conducted and many  children were rescued from construction sites and hotels. We coordinate with the social welfare organisations and the NGOs. Action has been taken against    those who exploited children,” District Child Welfare Committee chairman  Ammose Mammen said.According to the social welfare officials, several mafias, which supply children to construction sites, have been operating in and outside the state.  “The majority of children involved in child labour cases in the city are the  natives of other states. The mafias recruit children from rural areas of  West Bengal, Assam, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. But, the police are helpless  as they operate outside the state,” an official said.Ammose Mammen said the department, however, had taken action against people  who recruit children for labour works. “We have arrested many people who bring children from other states for child labour. But, it is very hard to  track the mafias operating in other state. Most of the children come from  rural areas and it is impossible to track their operations,” Ammose Mammen said.