Research Article
Agarwal S
Abstract
This study is conducted with the objective of depicting the relationship between child labour and childhood development. This paper addresses only behavioural, mental, physical development and nutritional problems related to child labour. The study is done on children between 9 and 12 years of age, and children below this age had difficulty in understanding the concepts of the survey questionnaires. Childhood is the critical time for safe and healthy human development. This finding leads strong support to the statement, that poverty is the root cause of child labour. Child labourers are at a high risk of illness and injury, cause due to severe emotional distress, had symptoms of withdrawal and regression, and were prematurely ageing, as well as experiencing depression and low self-esteem. Most of these children are observed to have sleep problems; behavioural problems, heavy consumption of cigarettes, alcohol, infection with sexually transmitted diseases; some criminal activities, unwanted pregnancy and abortion, physical and emotional illness, severe nutritional deficiency and even death due to a wide variety of machinery, biological, physical, chemical, ergonomic and psychosocial hazards as well as from long hours of work and poor living conditions.