PENCIL portal being used for effective enforcement of Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986. The Ministry of Labour & Employment has issued a press release on the portal on 23rd March, 2023.
Ministry of Labour & Employment has been implementing National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme for rehabilitation of child labourers through District Project Societies under the chairmanship of the District Magistrate. Under the NCLP scheme, the children in the age group of 9-14 years are rescued / withdrawn from work and enrolled in the NCLP Special Training Centres (STCs), where they are provided with bridge education, vocational training, mid-day meal, stipend, health care, etc. before being mainstreamed into formal education system. NCLP scheme has now been subsumed under Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) Scheme with effect from 01.04.2021. Henceforth, the rescued child labourers will be mainstreamed into formal education system through STC operational under SSA.
The Government has also developed an online portal PENCIL (Platform for Effective Enforcement of No Child Labour) for effective enforcement of CALPR Act. The portal has also a complaint corner for registering the complaint regarding child labour. These complaints are dealt by the respective District Nodal Officers of the District. Besides, Ministry of Labour & Employment also carries out public awareness about child labour through its website and various social media handles.
