Children - Terre des Hommes

Recommendations
Specific for children
ecognise that children are
impacted by mining in a number of ways, and these
impacts must be considered and addressed at all stages of
the mining cycle pre-mining, mining and post- mining
in all laws and policies on mining- National Mineral
Policy 2008; the Mines and Minerals (Development
and Regulation) (MMDR); Mines (Amendment) Act,
governance structure are the responsibility of several
departments in the State and Ministries in the Centre, it
is essential to ensure convergence both in law and policy
level, as well of services to ensure justice to the mining
child.
institutions the National Commission for Protection
of Child Rights as well as the State Commissions
for Protection of Child rights with children affected
by mining and the establishment of a state level and
district level monitoring committee consisting of all
the concerned departments that have responsibilities to
protect the child responsible for monitoring as well as
grievance redressal.
denial regarding the existence of children in labour
in mines and amend the laws accordingly. Given the
extreme hazardous nature of the activity, the Mines Act,
amended to ensure that children below 18 years of age
are not working in the mines as trainees and apprentices
from the age of sixteen. The lacunae in the Child Labour
to children working in mines must be addressed by
amending the law to include all mining operations in
Schedule A of Prohibited Occupations.
policies, amendments to the existing laws on mining
and those that are being proposed by the respective
ministries, whether with regard to the Rehabilitation
Bill, the Social Security Bill, the Land Acquisition Bill,
to name a few.
hunger and food insecurity in mining areas, as has been
found in this study and in keeping with the Supreme
Court Orders in the Right to Food Case 18 through stock
taking and implementation of ICDS projects in mining
areas.
migrant, adivasi and dalit mining children receive special
attention.
abuse that mining brings to children, the government
must prioritise the implementation of its flagship scheme
on child protection called the Integrated Child protection
Scheme (ICPS) on vulnerable areas such as the mining
areas. The aim of the scheme is to reduce vulnerability as
much as to provide protection to children who fall out of
the social security and safety net.
to address the condition of the children in the mining
areas in a manner relevant to their specific situations
through the provision and strengthening of protection,
monitoring and grievance redressal mechanisms or
support structures for protection of mining children
such as the Child Welfare Committees.
way) by the Juvenile Justice Boards, the Child Welfare
Committees (CWCs) and the State Juvenile Police
Units to adivasi children in areas where displacement
and landlessness has led to their exploitation or brought
them in conflict with law.
and Universal Compulsory Elementary Education is
a right for all children through the targeted provision
of accessible and quality education, the same as that
available to the children of the mining officials. Number,
quality and reach of primary and elementary schools,
including infrastructure and pedagogic inputs, have to
be adequately scaled up.
be extended to all children working in mines, which
means it must be upgraded substantially in terms of
numbers, financial allocations and quality of delivery
as well as monitoring and ensure mainstreaming of all
children attending NCLP schools into regular schools
11
17.
18.
At present mining and collieries are the only forms of mining included in Schedule A.Ibid.
For details see- http://www.righttofoodindia.org/icds/icds_orders.html (accessed on 13 March 2010)Interviews with mining-affected communities, Kasipur
district, Orissa, June 2009.