Living Pattern of Child Labourers in Dhaka City

Abstract

There are several facets to the topic of child labour. has a greater impact on marginalized and impoverished populations. Extreme poverty puts children at risk of embarking on harmful activities or professions. There is a large concentration of child labour in the informal economy, which is not affected by statistical or planning procedures. These kids do not have access to even the most basic of necessities, and they are plagued with physical and psychological obstacles. To make things even worse, their quality of life will be harmed, as well as their imagination and creative abilitie. Child labour is regarded to be one of the most egregious examples of child rights violations. ‘Child’ does not quite fit the definition of labor. Child labor is “an intriguing violation of human rights,” according to the implication of the phrase. Despite this, Bangladesh’s socioeconomic status is dismal. The very nature of their labour and working conditions is highly unhuman and dangerous, which is also harmful to their growth and development. Child workers are denied their right to proper growth and development because of the current reality of their working conditions. In order to stay engaged in high-stress settings, they must operate under constant stress. Children’s jobs are often characterized by lengthy hours of unclean work in noisy factories and dirty trades because of the plight of working families. The prevalence of child labour cannot be considered a socially beneficial practice in terms of the stress, circumstances, and impact on the children who work. Child labour is one of the most heinous societal ills we have to deal with today. Rather, it suggests a direct danger to the growth of a society’s human resource potential, whether that civilization is Bangladesh or another one altogether. Unlike this study, which focused on the working conditions of child labourers in Dhaka City, my study focuses on the general lifestyle of child labourers. The general objective of the study is to find out the daily lives of child labours in Dhaka City. The study is based on both the quantitative and qualitative research approaches. The descriptive method has been applied in the quantitative investigation. The case study method has been used for qualitative study. The population of the study are all child labours in Dhaka Metropolitan City (Both Dhaka City Corporations, South and North) The location of the study has been chosen because of the prevalence of child labour in this metropolis. In many cases, the data is perceptual, mainly based on what the respondent thinks are happening whether or not he/she knows or understands the context. If the researcher cannot observe the facts, he cannot verify or interpret them. However, attempts have been made to overcome this limitation by asking respondents to mention other counterfactuals as alternative answers. If they seem to accept every counterfactual offer, then they are probably lying or misunderstanding the question or the facts they are reporting. Still, when they are trying to tell the truth but misunderstand it, this cannot be discovered. Most children report that their families choose work over school because of the family’s inability to afford educational costs. While primary education in state schools is free and compulsory in Bangladesh, meaning that there are no school fees and textbooks are free, and certain target groups get bags of rice or bursaries from the state each month, there are many real costs. Many schools impose fees not for tuition but for examinations, admission, outings, snacks, and other special local c More than half of the respondents (54%) said that less than 5 years of age are children. A significant number of children (40%) think that they are under 10 years of age. Only (4%) think those less than 18 years of age are children. According to the data, the majority of respondents (96%) have a negative perception of children under the legal age of majority. On the other hand, 77 per cent of employers consider children under 12 years of age to be children, while most of the guardians, 91 per cent, believe less than 14 years of age to be children. In this study, the researchers found child labour worked 13 hours to 16 hours a day. Children reported to the researcher that they worked almost 14 hours a day. The researcher has found that the children’s monthly income was less than TK 2,000 but their monthly expenses exceeded TK 2,000, resulting in a constant financial crisis and inadequate living standards. The study shows, fifty-seven percent child labours living in working place and ten percent living as a floating people their living condition do not fulfill human rights. Child labourers face a lot of problems in their daily lives. In this analysis, it has been identified that most child labourers have been abused physically. They have been badly treated by other people. Sometimes police and criminal groups torture them. Children are vulnerable to a wide range of problems or hazards. Types of problems are violence, community disapproval, police arrests, and robberies of savings, health problems, and inability to cope. Lack of attachments, etc. The study shows that a large number of child labourers are abused. 67 percent of child labourers reported being subjected to at least one form of abuse. Child labourers are using drugs like Ganja and Dandi. The researchers found that their physical condition was relatively weak compared to other child labourers who did not use drugs. They said addicted children persuaded colleagues to take drugs. Drug-addicted child labourers reported that they committed crimes like stealing and carrying drugs to finance their habit. Researchers have found that child labourers know nothing about their rights. They are in low-paying, low-skilled jobs with no education or skills, making their poverty, and most likely their children’s poverty, permanently. Both quantitative and qualitative data confirm that neither the children, their employers, nor their parents know much about the working children’s rights. This is a major cause of their deplorable conditions. It is notable that neither the children, their employers, nor their guardians consider most of them to be “children” at all. Moreover, this study revealed a correlation among floating child labour, drug addiction, and crime. In addition to child labourers health, housing conditions, and motivations for working as children, several essential details have contributed to constructing a more accurate image of child labour today. Statistical evidence shows that poverty, peer pressure, the primary education system, low income, low standard of life, and the push toward criminality are all factors that contribute to child labour. The causes of child labour are listed in the first three Ps, while its effects are listed in the final three Ps. Let us examine its causes and consequences. First and foremost is poverty. Experience in the west has shown that, as a country becomes less poor and the poor rise to a level where they can meet their basic needs through their own work, they stop sending their children into labour.