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Child labor "develops in the context of governments pursuing national and international economic policies that have resulted in the social abandonment of millions of children, along with their families and whole communities. In many parts of the world, the process has been marked by large and rapid migrations of people from neglected rural areas to overcrowded, unserviced urban slums; the weakening and breaking up of communities; the undermining of families' struggles to survive poverty; and the translation of a traditional role of children as contributors to the family labor force to a cash-economy. . . .
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A nine year-old boy (top) works in a garage in Bangalore.
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The hands (left) of a child garage mechanic in Kundapur
" . . . The process has also been marked by the flow of children to the streets. While some such children are abused and exploited by their own families, the vast majority play an essential role in their families' resistance to poverty – they work to help themselves and their families survive. Simply to remove them from that role would have severe consequences." 1
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In cities and towns, children labor in virtually all sectors. They work in auto garages and parking lots; they do "beedi" making and construction work; they serve as agricultural laborers (coolies), domestic servants, hotel workers, rag pickers, and Agarbathi (incense) producers. They also work in traditional sectors such as carpet making and pottery, glass manufacturing, slate industries, carpentry, laundry, and match and firework production.
Following her mother's lead, a girl (right) prepares Agarbathi (incense) to be
exported
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Child Labor in Towns and Cities
