LAHORE - Pakistan Institute of Labour, Education and Research (PILER) Executive Director Dr Karamat Friday appreciated the Punjab government for taking solid measures to eradicate child labour at brick kilns.
Talking to APP, he lauded the Punjab government for approving an education package which envisaged monthly scholarship for kiln-workers children besides free stationery and uniform.
He said it was a wise decision of the Punjab chief minister for approving Rs 2,000 for parents who would send their children to schools. Meanwhile, he said, children who would go to school, during the current academic session will also receive Rs 1000 each.
He said: “So far, more than 40 brick kilns have been sealed and 42 owners have been taken into custody”.
To a question, Dr Karamat said the Punjab government in collaboration with International Labour Organization (ILO), was working to strengthen regulatory framework, institutional capacities and quality of the labour inspection system.
He said initially this project was financially supported for Punjab by the government of Netherlands and would extend its endeavour to support the provincial labour departments of all the four provinces including AJK and Gilgit Baltistan.
To another query, he said around 19,000 children working in brick kilns in Punjab had been enroled in schools, adding there are 6,090 total brick kilns in Punjab.
