Rescue & Repatriation

After a few years of collaboration with the owners, PCVC changed its strategy and took the decision to start removing the children from work.

This whole movement started with the cruel death of a child labourer named Afzal in Govandi. This issue was advocated to the political bosses in Maharashtra and thus was formed the State Task Force on child labour in 2005 under the chairmanship of the labour commissioner. A Task Force comprises of officers from Labour Department, Police Department, Shop & Establishment Department, Child and Welfare Committee, Medical and Education Department and NGOs. It is responsible for organizing raids and successfully removing the children from their workplace, in a child friendly manner.

We facilitated the task force formation in Maharashtra and building on its success we pushed for its replication in other states such as Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.

Large scale rescues have also taken place through the strategy of convincing the employers or giving them a warning. We believe that a raid is the last resort of rescuing a child, since it involves extensive planning and manpower. We have been extremely successful in building a relationship with the employers and convincing through various strategies so that they do not employ children. Though time consuming this strategy has been fruitful and has a long lasting effect.

After the rescue (either through convincing or raid) children are referred to the Child and Welfare Committees (CWC) and we push for a speedy repatriation and rehabilitation of the child. Children who cannot be repatriated home for various socio-economic reasons are admitted in one of our or any other NGO run Shelter Homes(See our Residential Care program for more information).