Stating that non-payment of monthly stipend of ₹ 400 to children studying in the Special Training Centres (STCs) under the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) for the past five years is discouraging the children, Service Unit for Development Activities in Rural (SUDAR), an NGO, has urged the Central government to release the payments.
In a letter submitted to K. Subbarayan, Tiruppur MP, its Director S.C. Natraj said child workers under 14 years were rescued and admitted to the centres run by NGOs in the district from 2005. Currently, there were 15 centres in the district with 300 plus students functioning at Kadambur, Bargur, Sathyamangalam and Talavadi areas.
To encourage them to continue their studies, Child Labour Division of the Ministry of Labour and Employment was paying a monthly stipend of ₹ 100 a student which was increased to ₹ 150 a student in 2010. A child having a minimum of 60% attendance in a month was eligible to receive the stipend. Stipend was credited to the bank account of the children and was utilised for pursuing their studies after joining regular schools.
The letter said the stipend was increased to ₹ 400 a month in February 2017, but was stopped from March, 2017. “From the academic year 2017-18 to 2020-21, children were not given their stipends causing hardship to them and their parents,” the letter said and urged the MP to take up the issue with the Centre.
Also, the staff working at these centres was not given salaries from March, 2020. Hence, steps should also be taken to pay their salaries regularly and the dues settled on time.
