The United Nations Convention on the rights of
the child [UNCRC] defines, child as a human being below the age of 18 years.
è CONCEPT AND DEFINITION OF CHILD RIGHTS:
Children's rights are economic, social and cultural rights, such as the right to education, the right to a decent standard of living, the right to health, etc. Children's rights include individual rights: the right to live with his or her parents, the right to education, the right to benefit from protection, etc...
è CHILD RIGHTS IN INDIA:
The Constitution of India guarantees all children certain rights, which have been which have been specifically included for them –
▬Right to be
protected from any hazardous employment till the age of 14 years (article 24).
▬
Right to be
protected from being abused and forced by economic necessity to enter
occupations unsuited to their age or strength [article 39(e)].
▬ Right to equality (article 14).
▬ Right against discrimination (article 15).
▬ Right personal liberty and due process of law
(article 21).
▬ Right to being protected being protected from
being trafficked and forced into bonded labor (Article 23).
▬ Right of weaker sections of the people to be
protected from social injustice and all forms of exploitation (Article 46).
▬ Besides the constitution, there are several
laws that specially applied to children.
è DEFINITION OF CHILD UNDER VARIOUS LAWS IN
INDIA:
Section
2(ii) of The Child Labour Act – 1986 –
▬ States that “Child means a person who has not
completed his 14th year of age”.
Section
2(C) of The Plantations Labour Act, 1951 –
▬ States that “Child means a person who has not
completed his 15th year”.
▬ Section 24 of the act further categorizes
young children and states that “no child who has not completed his 12th
year shall be required or allowed to work in any plantation.”
The Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961
▬
Define child “as
a person who has not completed his 15th year”.
▬
Section 21 of the
act prohibits the employment of a child in motor transport undertaking.
Section2(b)
of The Beedi and Cigar Workers Act, 1966 –
▬
“Child means a
person who has not completed 14 years of age.”
▬ Section 24 of the act says that “No child is
required or allowed to work in any industry promises”.
The
Prohibitions of Child Marriage Act, 2006 –
▬
Child means a
person who, if a male, has not completed 21 years of age, and if a female has
not completed 18 years of age.
The
Juvenile Justice Act 2015 –
▬
means “a person
who has not completed 18 years of age”
▬ However, a significant change was introduced
in the act of 2015, which stipulates that juveniles aged between 16 and 17
would be tried as adults, if they were charged with heinous crimes. This is in the aftermath of Nirbhaya case, where one
of the preparators was a juvenile.
Section
2(d) of The Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses at 2012
▬
States that
“Child means any person below the age of 18 years”.
è HISTORY OF CHILD RIGHTS IN TAMIL NADU AND INDIA:
vHISTORY OF CHILD RIGHTS IN TAMIL NADU:
§ Chief Minister’s girl child protection scheme
- 1992.
§ Tamil Nadu compulsory education act - 1994.
›
Elementary
education to be compulsory.
›
Duty of every
parent of a child of school age to cause child to attend an elementary school.
›
Exemptions –
Attendance at elementary school for a child shall not be compulsory.
› Corporal punishment was abolished in schools –
2003
› Tamil Nadu right of children to free and
compulsory education rules – 2011
› Tamil Nadu Commission for protection of child
rights rules – 2012
› Tamil Nadu state policy for children - 2021
vHISTORY OF CHILD RIGHTS IN INDIA:
§
The factories act
of 1948 amended in 1986 as child labour act and then again, amended as child
labour act of 2016.
§
Immoral traffic
prevention act 1986.
§
Child marriage
prohibition act 2006.
§ The right of
children to compulsory and free education at 2009.
§
The juvenile
Justice Act of 1986 amended in 2000, 2006, 2011 and finally the juvenile
Justice Act 2015.
§
Protection of
children from sexual offenses at 2000 and 2012 [POCSO].
§
Right to free and
compulsory elementary education for all children in the age group 6 to 14
(article 21A).
§ Right to be
protected from any hazardous employment till the age of 14 years (article 24).
§
Right to be
protected from being abused and forced by economic necessity to enter
occupations unsuited to their age or strength [article 39(e)].
§
Right to early
childhood care and education to all children until they complete the age of six
years [article 45].
è IMPORTANT MILESTONES IN THE GENESIS OF CHILD
RIGHTS ARE:
vThe Declaration of the rights of the child was
endorsed and adopted by United Nations General Assembly in 1959. India
confirmed and accepted the UNCRC in December 1992.
vImportant milestones in the genesis of child
rights are
§
The Apprentice
Act – 1850
§
The Reformatory
Schools Act 1897.
§
The Madras
Children Act, 1920.
§
National Policy
for Children, 1974.
§
The Juvenile Justice
Act, 1986.
§
The Child Labor Act,
1986.
§ India Ratified
the UNCRC on 11th December, 1992.
§National Human
Rights Commission was established on 12th October, 1993.
§
Supreme Court of India banned corporal punishment for children on December 1, 2000.
§
General Justice
Act was further amended in 2006 as Juvenile Justice Amendment Act and again in
2011.
§
Government Enacted
the commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005.
§
National
Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPRC) was constituted on 31st
July, 2006.
§
Prohibition of
Child Marriage Act, 2006.
§
Integrated Child
Protection Scheme, 2009.
§
The Right of
Children to Free and Compulsory Education - RTE Act 2009 came into force with
effect from 1st April. 2010.
§
Guidelines
Governing Adoption of Children in India were formulated in 2011.
§
The Protection of
Children from Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO) 2012 was enacted.
§ The Union Cabinet of India On 18th
April, 2013 approved the National Policy for Children.
0 Comments