Bhubaneswar : On World Day Against Child Labour, many political leaders including Smriti Irani tweeted on the year’s theme, “protect children more than ever from COVID-19”. Nobel laureate and child rights activist, Kailash Satyarthi said, “The yardstick of a visionary and decisive leadership is the primacy it attaches to children in its policies, programmes and economic schemes.”
“This World Day Against Child Labour, I urge businesses and corporations to take the moral responsibility and demonstrate compassion to stop employing child labour. I urge corporate leaders to come forward and end child labour..,” Mr Satyarthi tweeted.
“Children are the future of our nation. Let’s dedicate today and every day to protect our children from the evils of child labour…,” Ms Irani tweeted. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Minister for Food Processing said, “Let’s take a pledge to eradicate child labour from the world by reporting it…” and the NCW Chairperson, Rekha Sharma tweeted: “Say no to child labour”
Senior BJP leader Vasundhara Raje Scindia said, “Worldwide almost one in ten of all children are in child labour and this Covid-19 pandemic is going to prove detrimental to their health and development. We must come together now more than ever to protect them and their future!” Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik tweeted, “children are our future” and we must make efforts to eradicate child labour.
Earlier, last month 88 Nobel Laureates and world leaders had written to governments across the world to prioritize underprivileged children’s needs amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“We, the Laureates and Leaders for Children, demand that the most marginalized and vulnerable children are not forgotten by governments during this grave crisis and beyond. We must act now or risk losing an entire generation.” – Kailash Satyarthi, had said in a statement.