Children - Terre des Hommes

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other families also working in these quarries, but they are more
seasonal in their migratory pattern. The quarry workers are
mainly from Scheduled, backward and other backward castes
who are landless and do not have alternate employment.
Child Labour
Child labour is both visible and invisible here because some of
the children go to school and are enrolled, but they also work
in the quarries. In Vetajagalapalem there are 13 children
who are working in the quarries whose parents are all quarry
workers or ply autorickshaws. Here most of the families have
members who are also lorry drivers and ply lorries for carrying
the loads to the stone crushers. All the children surveyed here
said that they had to drop out of school, fully or partially,
because of financial problems, death of their parents or
indebtedness. They earn between Rs.300 and Rs.1,700 per
month and work for 5–8 hours a day, depending on the work
available. The children complained that they suffer from joint
pains, stomach pain, weakness, headache, skin diseases and
fevers. In the second site at Vetajangalapalem quarry colony
there were 11 children identified as working in the quarries
breaking stones. In the SC colony of the same village, 16
children in the age group of 14–18 years were found to be
working in the quarries for the last 2 years. Some of them
were earning up to Rs.3,000 per month. In Rongalavanipalem,
there were 43 child labourers in the quarries, working as a
stone crushers and truck cleaners. Here four children have
completely dropped out of school. In Kundram, village of
SC residents, 22 children said they work in the quarries, in
loading, in stone-breaking and in truck cleaning activities.
Those who work in the trucks said they work continuously,
24 hours a day and there are no fixed timings, while the other
children work for 5–10 hours a day. Some of the children
started working after the death of a parent. In the second
Kundrum colony 18 children were found working since the
last 2 years. In Kunchangi village, 16 children were working
and in Kunchangi quarry colony, 10 children. Some of them
less than 13 years of age, were working after they lost one of
Table 2.42: Details of quarry workers’ children in eight survey sites, Visakhapatnam
Village Panchayat No. of Age of child Whether Class Reasons Type of work Working
children labourers attending for working since
working in
school
quarries
Veta Jangala Jangala Palem 13 13– 18 years Yes On average Poverty Stone crushing, 6 months
Palem Class VII–VIII loading, truck -3 years
cleaners
Rongalavani Rongalavani 43 12–18 years 39 attending Primary level Poverty, Truck cleaners, Average
Palem Palem school; 4 to college parents illness stone crushing, 2 years
drop-outs and death loading work,
of parent carpentry,
cycle shop
Veta Jangala Jangala Palem 16 14– 18 years Yes Class IV–X, Poverty Labour work, Average
Palem SC colony one ITI stone crushing 1-2 years
Veta Jangala Jangala Palem 11 15– 18 years Yes Class IX–X Poverty, Death Labour work, Average
Palem quarry of parents stone crushing 1-4 years
colony
Kundram SC Kundram 22 12– 18 years Yes High school Poverty, Death Stone crushing, Average
Colony of parents loading work, lorry 3-7 years
cleaning,
agriculture labour
Kundram Kundram 18 13 to 18 years Yes On average Poverty, parents’ Labour work, stone Average
till class IX–X illness, death of crushing, 2 years
parents electrician tea stalls
Kunchangi Kunchangi 16 13– 18 years Yes High school Poverty, Death Labour work, stone
of parents crushing,
agricultural work
Kunchangi Kunchangi 10 12–18 years Yes On average till Poverty, Illness Lorry cleaning and Average
quarry camp class VII of parents labour work 1 years
Source: Baseline survey done by SGVS, Visakhapatnam, 2009