child labour

The children of today are the citizens of tomorrow. But given the daily dose of problems a majority of them are forced to face, a bleak future awaits them. For example, they are facing problems like poverty and child labour. We also find hundreds of children in poor families suffering from various diseases due to malnutrition. Children are compelled to work in return for food. Unbelievable as it sounds, this is the reality. That is also why we see children working in carpet factories and in households as domestic helpers.

Children work more than eight hours at a stretch and are paid very low wages. But worse, they are not well off at home either. Even at a tender age, most of them are the bread earners of the family. Forced to eke out a living and support their families, children are made to work in these factories for pittance. There are anti-child labour regulations but the owners of the factories or industries employing them do not strictly adhere to them. They can also been found working as servants of the very educated and well-to-do families. The authorities should ensure that children are not exploited in this way. It would be worthwhile to mention that awareness among the people must be created to eliminate child-labour. It should rather be considered a crime. There is a need to open special schools for these children. The involvement of non-governmental organisations will be a right step in this direction too.

Pravin Tibrewala, Modern Indian School

Wrong way

The Child Welfare Act 1992 does not permit guardians as well as teachers to use unrestricted means of physical punishment to maintain discipline among students. In recent days, some cases related to the torture have been pointed out. To maintain discipline among the youngsters, both the teachers and the guardians would have to play a significant role.

However, in the name of maintaining discipline, the teachers are still practising the traditional method of punishment like physical torture, force stripping of students and much more. The incident like the one in Pokhara when students were punished in an inhumane way is deplorable.

Sudhir Khadka, via e-mail

It’s Voller

This is in response to the “Answers to Quiz-12”, Euro 2004, published in The Himalayan Times on June 24. To the question, “Who is the coach of the German Team?” the answer on June 25 promptly stated that it was Sven Goran Eriksson. But the right answer is Rudi Voller. Eriksson, on the other hand, is the English coach. I hope the winner is announced after considering follies, committed by the publication house and those answering them.

Rameshwor Kaphle and Bhishan Joshi, via e-mail

Trafficking

Why is the government of Nepal not taking action against those who are involved in women trafficking? There are all types of people in the society, the good, the bad and the ugly. But for some unknown reason, the government has not been able to do what the public would like it very much to do – eradicate the malpractice. Instead, the government has been rendered a mute spectator. Girls are being trafficked through airports and the porous border but the authorities posted at these posts have only occasionally performed their duty well. The government and the public must unite to fight this evil.

Ganesh Niruala, via e-mail