World Day Against Child Labour 2021: UNICEF celeb advocate Ayushmann Khurrana: 'It robs children of childhood'

Youth icon and Bollywood star Ayushmann Khurrana is a thought leader who is aiming to bring constructive, positive changes in society with his progressive, conversation-starting entertainers. His name is synonymous with blockbusters in Bollywood. He is known for doing offbeat films like Andhadhun, Badhaai Ho and Shubh Mangal Savdhaan.

Ayushmann, voted as one of the most influential people of the world by TIME Magazine, has been recently appointed as UNICEF’s Celebrity Advocate for their global campaign EVAC (Ending Violence Against Children). On World Day against Child Labour, young Bollywood star Ayushmann Khurrana is highlighting how this practice is a total violation of child rights and must be stopped.

Ayushmann says, “Child labour robs children of their childhood and is a complete violation of their rights. COVID-19 has made children, especially girls and migrant children more vulnerable, exposing them to greater risks. Closure of schools, increased violence at home, job loss within families is driving children to child labour.”

According to the 2011 Census of India, there are 10.1 million economically active children in the age group of 5 to 14 years. Children in the informal unorganised sector, including domestic work, largely remain invisible and are therefore not fully covered in official data. They are employed as they are cheaper to hire and pliable to the demands of the employer and not aware of their rights.

The COVID-19 health pandemic and the resulting economic and labour market shock is having a huge impact on people’s lives and livelihoods. Unfortunately, children are often the first to suffer. 

To top this, school closure has disproportionately affected children who already experience barriers in accessing education; students living in remote locations, children of migrant workers, or those whose families have lost income because of job loss. Thus, for many, this crisis has brought limited or no education or falling further behind their peers. 

Economic downturn due to lockdowns and other COVID preventive measures have led to significant job losses. This, in turn, is expected to adversely impact the lives of the most vulnerable children. 

To curb this evil situation, Ayushmann and UNICEF have come together to prevent the exploitation of children and are urging people to take cognizance of such issues. The actor says, “Join hands to prevent this from happening. Advocate for social protection schemes for the poorest families; Highlight that all children should safely go back to schools when they re-open; Dial ChildLine 1098 if you see any child in distress.”

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