LHC orders govt to register all brick kilns in six months

LAHORE: In order to eradicate menace of bonded and child labour, the Lahore High Court has directed the Punjab government to register all brick kilns in six months and banned employment of children below 14 years in all sectors relating to economic activities.

The court directed the federal and Punjab governments to ensure implementation of all laws in letter and spirit and faithfully discharge their duties and perform their functions for eradication of forced and child labour from all sectors of the economy including agriculture, brick kilns, mining, tanneries, carpet weaving, glass-bangle making, construction and fisheries and all other such fields.

The court observed that the bonded and child labour is on the rampant despite all steps to eliminate it. “We are trapped in a vicious circle.

This can be broken only by a holistic approach and the first step is the effective enforcement of the laws which is the duty of the government and its functionaries.”

The court was hearing a habeas corpus petition of Muhammad Suleman seeking recovery of eight persons allegedly detained by an owner of a kiln factory and had directed SHO Police Station Noshehra Jadid, Bahawalpur to produce the detainees. Later, the court converted habeas corpus petition into constitutional petition and treated it as a Public Interest Litigation.

Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh, in its 32 page order issued at LHC Bahawalpur bench, made comprehensive guidelines to streamline the working of labourers at kiln factories and curb the menace of child labour. The court directed Punjab secretary labour and human resource department to ensure registration of all brick kilns under the Factories Act, 1934 within six months commencing from Feb 02.

The court ruled that the deputy commissioner of every district shall arrange issuance of CNICs to brick kiln workers and registration of their children by Nadra within six months. No child below the age of 14 years shall be employed or permitted to work at any brick kiln. Every engagement or appointment of a worker at a brick kiln shall be subject to a written contract in the prescribed form as required under Section 3 of the Punjab Prohibition of Child Labour at Brick Kilns Act, 2016.

No brick kiln owner or manager shall give any advance to a worker engaged by him exceeding Rs 50,000 and every brick kiln owner/ manager shall maintain a register of advances in the prescribed manner. No industrial, commercial or agricultural establishment, factory, mine, workshop, business, trade, industry or other place where any economic activity is carried on shall employ or permit a child below 15 years to work as mandated by the Punjab Restriction on Employment of Children Act, 2016. It shall also not engage any adolescent (15-18 year-old) to perform any hazardous work in the establishment as specified in the schedule to the said Act. The work hours of every adolescent shall be in accordance with Sections 5 & 6. The government shall notify District Vigilance Committee (DVC) for every district within 30 days in terms of Section 15 of the Punjab Bonded Labour (Abolition) Act, 1992.

The brick kiln owners shall pay statutory contribution to the Employees’ Social Security Institution in accordance with law and if they fail to do so their dues shall be recovered with penalties under Section 23 of the Provincial Employees Social Security Ordinance, 1965, as arrears of land revenue.