Dhaka: The government will undertake a Tk 300 crore project to get one lakh child labourers out of hazardous labour by 2021.

Speaking as the chief guest at a city seminar on Thursday, State Minister for Labour and Employment Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu said this.

The seminar organisers, Bangladesh Nari Sangbadik Kendra and Shapla Neer, however, called for early formulation of rules in line with the ‘Domestic Worker Protection and Welfare Policy-2015’ so that no children under the age of 12 years old can be employed as labourer while teen-agers of 14 to 18 years old can be employed only for non-hazardous light labours.

A total of 3.45 million children of 5 to 17 years’ old are child labourers of which 12.80 lakh children are employed in hazardous labour in Bangladesh, journalist Rita Bhowmick told the seminar in her keynote presentation quoting a 2013 ILO (International Labour Organisation) survey.

Bangladesh Nari Sangbadik Kendra in association with Shapla Neer held the seminar on Safety and Welfare of Child Domestic Workers following ‘Domestic Worker Protection and Welfare Policy-2015’ at the National Press Club.

State Minister for Labour and Employment Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu emphasised on necessary law formulation and developing a law-abiding mentality among the people for protection of child labourers.

Bangladesh government is promise-bound to stop hazardous child labour by 2021 and all types of child labour by 2025, he said adding that, keeping the promise in mind the government is going to undertake a mega project to fulfill the target by 2025.

Keynote speaker Rita Bhowmick said, in 2017, a total of 32 domestic child workers became victim of physical torture, rape and murder. She said domestic child workers work upto 14 to 17 hours daily according to the Children Right Forum Survey 2014-15.

Bangladesh Nari Sangbadik Kendra and Shapla Neer came up with 17-point recommendation including formulating act following the guidelines, conducting national level survey to record the exact number of child domestic workers of the country, introducing special helpline for domestic workers and so on.

The speakers also urged the society and media to work for increasing awareness to prevent torturing domestic workers.

The programme was presided over by Bangladesh Nari Sangbadik Kendra President Nasimun Ara Huq.

Among others, Shamsunnahar, Advocacy Officer of Shapla Neer and Parvez Sultana Ruma, General Secretary of Bangladesh Nari Sangbadik Kendra also spoke in the occasion.