THE LEGAL AND ECONOMICAL DIMENSIONS OF BONDED LABOUR SYSTEM

Abstract

India has always been committed to pulling people out of bonded labour and the clutches of slavery. The ambitions are remarkable but the situation is not. Even after 70 years of the promise to economic, social and political justice, the marginalized continues to face various socio-economical and socio-political challenges. The System of Bonded Labor hardly finds mention in the political speeches. A section of society so politically irrelevant and economically exploited that even Hope fails to knock on its door. Bonded Labour System is the modern form of slavery and is still practiced in various parts of India despite being criminalized about four decades ago. The System gives no regard to age and gender; it traps not only an individual but even the families; it doesn’t recognize the minimum human dignity and it only seeks to perpetuate the bondage from generation to generation. There are various Laws in India to address the issue, but the real question is whether these laws are enough to tackle the problems. To answer that, we need to examine the real nature of the problem. The problem is not merely legal or social, rather it is more of an economical problem. The laws may do away with the exploitation by providing the fair rules of the game however it cannot make a weak player stronger. Most of the Bonded Labours are engaged in the unorganized and informal economy. The basic wages, regulation of service, work conditions, facilities specific to these informal sectors is not provided for. Neither satisfactory attempt has been made to formalize these sectors. As a result, the larger part of these sectors remains in the dark and somewhere in that darkness, bonded labour is constantly subjected to exploitation, violence, injustice and marginalization. Thus understanding both the legality and economics revolving around bonded labour becomes imperative to better appreciate the need to the hour. This article aims to explore both of these aspects. It discusses the existing Legal Framework for the protection and upliftment of bonded labour as well as the various sectors of the economy they are engaged in along with various economic factors such as living standards, compensation, economic justice etc.