Five hundred child laborers rescued in raids on sweatshops

NEW DELHI, Wednesday (AFP) About 500 boys aged five to 14 have been rescued from embroidery sweatshops in the Indian capital after being forced to work more than 10 hours daily in cramped quarters, officials said Tuesday. "About 500 children were rescued," said Nalin Chauhan, a spokesman for the city's labor department. "If they have parents they will be sent home. Otherwise they will be sent to social welfare homes for minors."

The children, mostly from the impoverished eastern state of Bihar and neighbouring Nepal, are being housed in a government building in Delhi for the moment.

"(My employer) would beat up the trainees and even lock them up in rooms if they did not cooperate. We would get two meals a day and work for over 10 hours," Iftikar, one of the rescued boys, told the Hindu newspaper. Small embroidery shops across India use touts to round up children from poor families for the delicate work that requires small, nimble fingers.

Authorities in several cities have launched raids to halt the widespread practice. A joint team from the Delhi Labor Department, Delhi police and several social organizations conducted raids on at least four sites on Monday afternoon. According to the Times of India, the raids were originally expected to free some 2,000 children but a leak tipped off the shop owners.

The Hindu reported that sweatshop owners locked many of the children in abandoned houses or in underground workshops as they fled. Police and volunteers from social work organisations are expected to accompany some of the children to their homes.