Provincial Minister for Labour & Human Resource Raja Ashfaq Sarwar has said that Punjab government will ensure implementation of ordinance 2016 prohibiting child labour at brick kilns. He said that the committees constituted for this purpose have started taking action and 40 brick kilns have been sealed and 42 persons responsible of child labour have been taken into custody.
He said this while talking to media and during a press conference along with Spokesman Punjab government Syed Zaeem Hussain Qadri and Secretary Labour Ali Sarfraz at DGPR, today. Raja Ashfaq Sarwar said that Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif constituted a high level steering committee under his chairmanship for eliminating child labour at brick kilns. He announced a special package for motivating the children of labourers working at brick kilns for the admission in schools, under which, committees comprising concerned DCOs, DPOs, Assistant Commissioners and SDPOs have been constituted in all districts and given the powers of inspector. The committees will inspect 12 brick kilns in a week and will be authorized to take action against child labour. The Provincial Minister told that Labour & Human Resource Department has set up 0800-55444 helpline for lodging complaints about child labour at brick kilns on which 80 complaints were received so far and immediate action was taken. He told that on the direction of Chief Minister Punjab besides free education, books, notebooks, uniform and transport, monthly stipend of one thousand rupees to each child whereas two thousand rupees will be given to the parents on the admission of children in schools. He said that a law has also been introduced for contract job and getting salaries of only months as advance. Raja Ashfaq Sarwar told that 17240 labourers are residing at 6090 kilns in Punjab and the number of children aging from five years to 14 years not attending the school is 23642 out of which Labour Department with the cooperation of Literacy, Schools Education, Local Government and other departments has provided admission to 21847 children in the nearest schools of kilns. He told that on the order of Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, online inspection of industrial estates all over the province has been completed for which modern Android phone technology was utilized for obtaining authentic and transparent data. The Provincial Minister disclosed that seminars are also being arranged in all districts for creating awareness regarding elimination of child labour and informing owners and labourers of brick kilns about the ordinance prohibiting bonded labour.