Bengaluru police and labour officials rescued 529 children from child labour and registered 105 cases after inspecting 6,076 establishments across the city on Saturday, in one of the city’s largest reported enforcement drives against illegal employment of minors.
The cases were filed against employers under the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act and the Juvenile Justice Act. Special teams carried out surprise inspections following directions from senior police officers, according to the report.
The highest number of rescues was recorded in Bengaluru’s West division, which includes Byatarayanapura, City Market, Chamarajpet, Chandra Layout, Cottonpet, Kalasipalya and Upparpet. Teams inspected 754 establishments in the division and rescued 103 children, while 15 cases were registered at various police stations.
East division recorded the second-highest number of rescues, with 74 children found during inspections at 927 locations. North division reported 66 rescues, followed by Central with 63, South with 52, Northeast with 47 and the Central Crime Branch with 45.
The figures show a wide variation in the number of children rescued across the city’s police jurisdictions. Electronics City division reported the lowest number, with three children rescued. The Central Crime Branch registered the highest number of cases, with 26 cases filed during the operation.
The inspections covered a large number of establishments rather than being limited to a single locality or type of workplace. The reported action places the enforcement of child labour laws across commercial areas, industrial locations and other workplaces within the city’s policing and labour administration framework.
Under the provisions cited in the report, employers engaging children in prohibited labour can face legal action. The involvement of both police and labour inspectors reflects the joint enforcement responsibilities involved in identifying minors at workplaces, registering cases and initiating follow-up action.
The division-wise figures also indicate where enforcement teams found the greatest number of children during the drive. West division accounted for nearly one-fifth of all rescues despite inspections at fewer locations than East division, while the Central Crime Branch’s 26 cases were the largest case count reported among the participating units.
The report did not provide details on the identities or ages of the rescued children, the establishments involved, their rehabilitation arrangements or the next stage of the cases. It also did not specify whether further inspections or prosecutions would follow the operation.
The immediate next step is the processing of the 105 cases registered under the child labour and Juvenile Justice laws by the police and relevant authorities.
