Abstract:
COVID19 pandemic exposed the severe socio-economic inequities in the Indian society. The most vulnerable of these were the children. The current study is an attempt to understand the implications of the pandemic on child labor and its consequences on the living conditions of the children. The study was undertaken in Kalyan-Dombivali, a twin city close to Mumbai, in the state of Maharashtra, India. The study reveals that the pandemic forced even the school-going children to engage in labour work. One of the main reasons for increased child labour was the economic distress among the families of these children caused by the lock downs imposed during the pandemic. But the most striking finding of the study is a new form on inequity in form of ‘digital divide’ that forced to the students out of the education system and pushed them to child labour. The study highlights the conditions faced by these children and provides a strong justification for recognizing their labour as child labour that needs to be prevented by undertaking appropriate social work interventions so that these children can return back to the school.
