What do numbers say about child labour? The number of children rescued in 2017-18 stood at 47,635. This rose steadily to 50,284 (in 2018-19), 54,894 (in 2019-20) and finally 58,289 (in 2020-21).
This trend can be seen worldwide. Child labour has decreased by 38% globally in the last decade, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO).
But over 152 million children are still in the grip of this social evil, the eradication of which is one of the UN Sustainable Goals.
Member states have been asked to take immediate steps to eradicate forced labour and ensure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour and to end it in all forms by 2025. How big of a problem is it in India? The Child Labour (Prohibition