AsiaCalling

Download The United States and other Western countries are planning to tailor their import policies to refuse products made by child labor in India.

This could mean they would refuse the fine glittery thread of zari textiles made in the villages of West Bengal...mainly by children.  

As Umarah Jamali reports many of the children learn the intricate trade as early as 4 years old and the work is a vital source of income for them and their families.

 Almost every family has a home-based embroidery workshop in this village of Raskhali around 60 kilometres from Calcutta.

Most of the work is done by hand…often by children…

8-year old Moni Begum is stitching shining beads on to a decorative fabric in her family’s courtyard workshop.

"I work with my sisters for 5 to 6 hours in the morning before I go to school. During the school holiday, I work for 14 to 15 hours a day in our workshop.”

Her 12 year old sister Saleha Begum, works full time in the workshop.

She starts her day at 6 am and finishes late in the evening.

“I have been doing this since I was 6 or 7 years old. I dropped out of school a couple of years ago to become a full-time labor. Now I’m a skilled zari artist. I can earn up to 32 US dollar a month.”

Employing children to work in hazardous environments is illegal in India…but Zari making is not technically a dangerous job although it deprives people of their childhood.

It is believed there are between one and two million children working in India’s zari industry.

15-year Asmina says many girls, like her, are saving up to pay for their wedding dowry.

“Our eldest sister saved some money from her job as a zari artist. She’s now married. I’m also saving some of my income for my future marriage. To do that, I have to work long hours, up to 15 hours a day.”

In this village girls like Asmina often end up becoming the second wife of a much older man because they can not afford to pay a high dowry to get a good husband.

At the young age of 8, Moni is already thinking about marriage.

“Sometimes I want to go out and play with my friends. But I don’t have the time. If I go out playing, I can’t contribute for my family. I need to save money for my future.”

Parents also push their children to work.

Mahenneka Begum’s three young daughters and a son are all full-time zari workers.

"My husband left me years ago. I know child labour is illegal and children should go to school but I have no options. I’m dependent to my children. If they don’t work, we might end up as beggars by now. I feel bad that they have to work and quit school at very young age.”

Village elders like Mukhtar Shekh don’t see a problem with what is happening.

“If people don’t have money, they might be involved in various crimes. It happened before. But now, men, women and children are working in zari industry, and our economy is improving. There’s peace and happiness in the village now thanks to embroidery industry.”

Some Hindu villages in West Bengal are also involved in zari work.

But it’s mostly done in majority Muslim villages.

Muslims make up about 13 percent of India’s population.  

But less than three percent are employed in government jobs.

Alauddin Ahmed is a local school teacher.

“Many government surveys find that compared to Hindus, Muslims live in poorer socio-economic situation. We have increasing number of underaged Muslim children drop out of school and start working in embroidery industries.”

Looking back, Mintu Mollah, a full-time zari artist, believes he made the right decision by entering the industry when he was just a boy.

"I started working as a zari artist since I was 7 or 8, as soon as I dropped out of school. Now I’m 18, and I’m already an expert. If I kept on studying, there was no guarantee that I will have a better job on government offices now. Many educated men are jobless. And now I’m earning 80 to 100 US dollar a month. I can support my family. I’m happy.”