Editor’s Note
This article examines the troubling reliance on child labor in Jaipur’s gemstone industry, highlighting the harsh daily realities faced by young workers. It underscores the urgent need for ethical scrutiny and reform in global supply chains.
In Jaipur, the capital of the state of Rajasthan, the precious stones business thrives on the exploitation of child labor.
The greenish rust from polishing stones blurs the red of chewed tobacco – paan – spit stains on the wall. The response of 12-year-old Tosif Khan is drowned out by the noise of the sanding machine and the call to prayer from the mosque in the Top Khana Huzuri neighborhood:
Tosif shares the patsan (table where he polishes gems and jewelry) and the green tint on his small fingers with five other employees. He is one of the children who form an integral part of the informal precious stone cutting and polishing industry in Jaipur, an activity that in the region has always been a family tradition.
The capital of Rajasthan, with just over three million inhabitants, is known as the largest production and marketing center for precious stones in the entire country, which exported gems, jewelry, and all types of precious stones worth $41.8 billion in 2013 (16% of national exports). Spain is among the top 25 global importers of Indian gems and jewelry. However, the neighborhoods adjacent to Johari bazar (jewelry market) and Monak chowk (ruby square) also hide micro-networks of child exploitation in a city known in the media as the city of gems.
Rajasthan also has the dubious honor of being the third state in India with the highest incidence of child labor, with over one million workers between 5 and 14 years old, according to the latest detailed data from the 2001 census; 50,000 in Jaipur alone, according to the national press. In the country, child exploitation continues to be an important engine of its economic growth and a serious national problem. The number of exploited minors exceeds 10 million and has not decreased in recent decades, according to government statistics. And these figures are based on official records. They do not take into account children without documents or those who are trafficked. Those whom child rights defense organizations call “invisible children.”
The national law against child labor is pending review by Parliament.
There are also no exact figures for children trafficked at the local or state level, but according to Govind Beniwal, a member of the Rajasthan State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, between 15 and 20 minors are trafficked daily in Jaipur. Most of them come from the eastern states of India to work in the jewelry, textile, or domestic industries.
International reports recognize that states like Bihar or Uttar Pradesh have high levels of hereditary life debts that fuel trafficking and child exploitation in rural areas. Mohamed Parvez, his brother Feiz, and the other 50 children rescued on January 11 by the North Jaipur Anti-Trafficking Unit were originally from Bihar.
says Parvez, who is seven years old.
explains Amit Mehta, a member of the Resource Institute for Human Rights (RIHR), who assisted in the rescue. The local NGO collaborated in the liberation of more than 330 minors in 2013. The rescues are coordinated by special police units and grassroots organizations, who inform the Child Welfare Committee, the Labor Department, and the district judge. After the reports, the children are taken to shelters, where they await treatment and the resolution of each of their cases.
explains Dr. Jyoti, a member of the local organization that coordinates Apna-Ghar, one of Jaipur’s shelters.
The effectiveness of rescues has increased with the measures taken by the Rajasthan Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Taking advantage of the national Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act of 2006, the Commission formulated the Child Labor (Prohibition and Regulation) Rules (2012), establishing operating standards for child labor cases. Rajasthan has thus become the only state in India, along with Delhi, that does not depend on the national Child Labor (Prohibition and Regulation) Act of 1986. This law prohibits child labor only when it involves hazardous occupations and for children under 14. Something that both traffickers and employers know well.
comments Murshid Alam, one of the children rescued on January 11, who is clearly younger than he claims. His uncle brought him to Jaipur and is the ustad (employer) in one of the mini-factories.
Between 15 and 20 minors are trafficked daily in Jaipur to work in the jewelry or textile industries.