Social and Legal Issues Report

8/10/2019 Social and Legal Issues Report

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Social and Legal Issues

Project on

DEBT BONDAGE

Aishwarya Saxena

(121218)Raunak Sinha (121221)

Under the guidance of:

Prof. Neena Jindal

JAYPEE UNIVERSITY OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY,

A!NAGHAT "SOLAN#


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Table of Contents

Debt Bondage......................................................................................................... 1

Things going on in India that set a glaring example of Debt Bondage

2-3

The Social Conse!ences of

cast..."-#

Debt bondage

Sla$er%

.&-'

Contrib!tor% (actors.......................................................................................... )-12

*nti-Sla$er% meas!res.....................................................................................13-1&

Case St!dies ................................................................................................... 1+-22

S!mmar%

.23


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$e%& 'onda(e

Debt bondage (also known as debt slavery or bonded labor) is a person's pledge of their labor or

services as security for the repayment for a debt or other obligation. The services reuired to

repay the debt may be undefined! and the services' duration may be undefined. Debt bondage can

be passed on from generation to generation. "rticle #(a) of the #$%& upplementary onvention

on the "bolition of lavery defines debt bondage as the status or condition arising from a

pledge by a debtor of his personal services or of those of a person under his control as security

for a debt! if the value of those services as reasonably assessed is not applied towards the

liuidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services are not respectively limited and

defined. The onvention seeks to abolish the practice. Debt bondage has been described by the

United *ations as a form of modern day slavery. +ost countries are parties to the onvention!

but the practice is still prevalent in outh "sia. Debt bondage in ,ndia was legally abolished in

#$-& but remains prevalent. This was due to with weak enforcement of the law by governments.

onded labor involves the e/ploitive interlinking of credit and labor agreements that devolve

into slave0like e/ploitation due to severe power imbalances between the lender and the borrower.

The rise of Dalit activism! government legislation starting as early as #$1$! as well as ongoing

work by *23s and government offices to enforce labor laws and rehabilitate those in debt!

appears to have contributed to the reduction of bonded labor in ,ndia. 4owever! according to

research papers presented by the ,nternational 5abor 3rgani6ation! there are still many obstacles

to the eradication of bonded labor in ,ndia.

There have been numerous investigations in recent years to determine the incidence and

prevalence of modern slavery worldwide! and debt bondage in ,ndia has been found to be the

most e/tensive form of slavery in e/istence today! occupying the greatest number of captives.

"lthough there is an abundance of data to support these findings! the ,ndian government has not

allotted sufficient effort to end the practice. ,t is apparent that ,ndia has uniue conditions that

have enabled slavery to persist over a great length of time! and allowed slaves to e/ist in greater

numbers there than in any other country on 7arth.

The ob8ectives of this report are to outline the socio0political conte/t in ,ndia that has allowed the

continuation of slavery! to describe the practice of ,ndian debt bondage! to identify the current


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anti0slavery laws and organi6ations in the country! and to recommend interventions that may

improve the present set of circumstances.

T)in(* (oin( on in India &)a& *e& a (larin( e+a-le of $e%& 'onda(e

The Chukri System, West Bengal:

The hukri ystem is a debt bondage or forced labor system found in 9idderpore and other parts

of est engal. Under this system a female can be coerced into prostitution in order to pay offdebts. he generally works without pay for one year or longer in order to repay a supposed debt

to the brothel owner for food! clothes! make0up! and living e/penses.

The system creates a workforce of people virtually enslaved to their creditors! and constitutes

one of the primary causes for women entering the se/ trade. The system flourishes primarily in

est engal or alcutta.

The case of Bihar and UP:

The money wages of the field0laborers in Tirhut (*orth ihar) had not risen for the past si/ty

years! though the prices of food grains had. 7ven in times of plenty! after paying the rent and

numerous access of the landlord! very little is left to them for their own support so that! the

failure of a single crop is bound to cause distress! particularly! in the districts where rice is grown

as it is very susceptible to drought.

,n hamparan district! -% per cent of the cultivators were in debt! the greater number of ;yots

were insufficiently fed and their average holdings of five acres were not sufficient to pay the

grain advances granted by the +aha8an at rates of twenty to twenty five per cent! pay the rent to

the 6amindars and yet maintain their families. This indebted tenant! thus! lived on the verge of

starvation and thus dependent totally on the +aha8an to tide over his difficulties. o in such

circumstances! the hapless peasant and agrarian laborers would have no choice but to become

trapped sooner or later in a relationship of bondage whereby he and his family9amias< in ihar and

4arwahas (ploughmen).


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9amias plough and do all the fieldwork for their masters for which they are paid in kind. ,f they

fail to turn up! they are paid nothing. They are also forced to perform all kind of eggar work

relating to the carriage of loads! and for which they are paid an abysmally low rate of one pice

per mile which was #=##? of a rupee. ometimes! they were not at all paid for this kind of work.

,n the ;evised District 2a6etteer of @alamau! #$A-! one finds the following information on these

bonded laborers: The kamiya is practically a serf who binds himself to serve his master in return

for a money advance. 4e is obliged to work for his master as long as the loan remains unpaid. ,n

return he is provided with % kathas of rice0land and wages in kind at the village rates.

This wage for a full day4arwahagiri


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T)e Soial Con*e/0ene* of Ca*&e

To understand the social structure in ,ndia! it is imperative to outline the caste system. Thissystem of social hierarchy is the most important contributory factor in debt0bondage slavery. The

caste system has been described as uniuely ,ndian! and it is unlikely that slavery could e/ist

without it since the ma8ority of slaves are Dalits (the lowest social group! actually outside the

traditional Barna system of caste).

aste is one of the oldest customs in ,ndia! the roots of which date back more than three

thousand years. ,n theory! the hierarchy consists of four tiers! or varnas. These varnas include the

rahmins! the highest caste! traditionally consisting of priests and scholarsC the 9shatriyas!

warriors and rulersC the Baishya! merchantsC and the hudra! peasants! laborers! and servants. The

Dalits have been known as the UntouchablesE (including cheduled astes=s and cheduledTribes=Ts! which will be referred to as Dalits for the purposes of this paper) and were not part of

the original ranking system. Technically speaking they remain outside the varna structure today.

,n #$F%! the ritish @arliament passed the 2overnment of ,ndia "ct with the professed intention

of balancing ritish and ,ndian economic interests! yet according to Gawaharlal *ehru in reality

it strengthened the roles of elites (both ritish and ,ndian) while e/cluding the possibility of

interference by representatives of the ,ndian people. The act broadly separated rahmin and

non0rahminE castes! presumably to simplify the structure of the caste system for ritish

understanding. The non0rahmin groups were classified into the categories of backward

classesE and depressed classesE! which later became cheduled astes. (,t is important toremember that individuals are born into their caste statusC therefore! caste affiliations have little

to do with life choices and are largely beyond one


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citi6ens) and e/plained the necessity of colonial ruleE. ,ndia is steeped in tradition! and caste has

been socially accepted and tolerated throughout its history! especially since its reinforcement

during the ritish colonial era. "lthough the ,ndian onstitution (passed in #$%A) includes

numerous articles that specifically prohibit all forms of UntouchabilityE! discrimination! and

e/clusion according to caste (as well as race! se/! or religion)! the reality is that caste is still a

detrimental and obstructive factor for the weakE or lower classes. ,t is common for Dalit


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$e%&1'onda(e Sla2er3

Debt0bondage slavery is a practice that has a long0standing history in ,ndia! with its roots in the

caste system. ealthy higher0caste landlords typically give small loans to destitute individuals

and=or families without assets! whose labor is their only means of repayment. ,t is clear that landownership! wealth! power! and higher caste status are interrelated. Dalit


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advantageous for ,ndian landlords because their profits can e/ceed %A per cent! compared to less

than # per cent if the minimum wage is paid. The debts are not considered legitimate by any

governmental authority! yet landlords often manage to sustain them over many generations.

orking to pay off debt without receiving wages leads to the trap of bondage.

During the period of bondage! families accrue more debt whenever there is a need for medicalcare! additional foodstuffs! to hold a ceremony (e.g.! a wedding or funeral)! or if a worker is fined

for being absent or stealing! etc. The landlord! or creditor! tacks the cost of such necessities onto

the e/isting debt. "dditionally! a standard procedure for ,ndian landlords is that all of the

worker


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employ child slaves occupy dimly lit buildings with poor ventilation! leading to damaged

eyesight and the spread of infectious diseases. ,n the silk industry! children work with boiling

water! freuently suffering severe burns! scars! and the removal of skin on their hands and feet.

hildren are especially susceptible to various forms of maltreatment because of their inherent

vulnerability. ,ncidents of verbal! physical! and se/ual abuse are common in cases of child

slavery. hildren working in stone uarries are made to carry e/plosives because their small

bodies are a better fit for the tight cracks in the stone.

The working conditions of those held in debt bondage constitute a form of slavery because they

are in gross violation of fundamental human rights and established laws! and severely restrict the

freedom of individuals. Debt bondage is based upon two principles: that an individual is reuired

to work under the threat of a penalty! and that the service performed is involuntary. The penaltiesand restrictions placed upon bonded laborers are the key differentiators between debt0bondage

slavery and otherwise poor working conditions. ervitude is compulsory for bonded laborers

because they work under the threat of further human rights violations! psychological or physical

abuse! or possible death in the event of non0compliance.


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Con&ri%0&or3 Fa&or*

eak rural infrastructure is a central factor in the continuation of debt bondage! and is related to

caste discrimination. Kewer Dalit


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power and privileges and is synonymous with not only the economic status of a household but its

social status as wellE.

esides status! employment options (especially self0employment) in rural areas are heavily

contingent on land ownership. ,n rural ,ndia! the number of cheduled astes in #$$1 who

cultivated their own land (about ?A per cent of rural s) amounted to less than half the number

of higher castes who owned and cultivated land.#& onded labor is certain to persist so long as

land rights are systematically denied to Dalit


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resulting in entire families and villages ending up as bonded to the landlord for generations. The

absence of public health facilities and education opportunities literally push the rural population

to work either as bonded laborers or to migrate into urban areas seeking odd 8obs.

" large number of children employed as bonded laborers by the non0farming sectors like small0

scale te/tile! firecracker! leather goods manufacturing! brick kilns and granite e/traction units are

from the families who are sub8ected to distress migration from the rural villages. ,n the cities!

children from these families are employed as bonded laborers in restaurants and eateries or end

up being employed as bonded beggars or fall prey to se/ trade.

,n +eghalaya! e/traction of coal in private coal mines in the Gaintiya hills region is e/clusively

undertaken by manual laborers! thousands of them being bonded! who have come to work in the

mines from neighboring tates to beat acute poverty. ,t was reported in the 4indu newspaper on

#$=#A=?A#? that a person had sold himself and his wife as bonded laborers against a loan of ;s.

1%!AAA=0 four years ago to the village landlord. 4e died this "ugust leaving behind the unpaid

debt. The fact that both husband and wife had worked for virtually no money and ate only stale

food at the farm of the landlord day and night did not help. The debt only accumulated interest.

The husband was often beaten up so brutally at work that he wouldn


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central assistance is to be provided if they e/press their inability to provide their share. ut! by

and large! the process of rehabilitation is poor and is freuently delayed! particularly in the case

of inter0state bonded migrant laborers! and the degree of concerted convergent action reuired on

the part of the administration is rarely forthcoming. @rosecution of employers is also weak. ince

the bonded laborers are very poor and asset less! most of them relapse into bondage! while others

e/perience only a very marginal increase in income. The financial assistance from the

2overnment! even if reali6ed! in the absence of any additional support mechanism for a released

and asset less laborer is not sufficient support to start a new life. 4owever! increasing the

uantum of the support amount is not a viable solution. ,nstead to end the practice! what is

reuired is strict implementation of labor laws in ,ndia.

3ther than this! the tate 2overnment should dovetail the entrally ponsored cheme for

rehabilitation of bonded laborers with other ongoing poverty alleviation schemes such as warna

Gyanti 2ram wara8 ;o6gar Po8ana (G2;P)! pecial omponent @lan for cheduled astes!Tribal ub @lans! etc. @reventive efforts must recogni6e the social dimensions of bondage! and

thereby address it through public sensiti6ation and rights awareness! adult literacy! organi6ing

workers! income generation and vocational skills development.

The strategies to eliminate bonded labor need to go beyond the symptoms to address the root

causes. The multifaceted and deeply rooted nature of those causes reuires an integrated and long

term strategy. The role of District +agistrates in elimination of bonded labor is significant.

The law provides for the duties and responsibilities of the District +agistrate and every officer

specified by him. They have to ensure that the provisions of the "ct are properly carried out. The

law also provides for the constitution of Bigilance ommittees at the district and sub0divisional

level! duties and responsibilities of such ommittees in the area of identification and

rehabilitation of freed bonded laborers. The District +agistrates have to ensure the release of

identified bonded laborers on the basis of reports submitted by the Bigilance ommittees after

conducting the survey at the district and sub0divisional level. They would also formulate suitable

schemes for the rehabilitation of freed bonded laborers0land based! non0land based and skill=craft

based occupations! keeping in view the preferences! felt needs and interest of the beneficiaries.


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An&i1Sla2er3 Mea*0re*

The onded 5abor ystem ("bolition) "ct of #$-& (5")! incorporated into the onstitution

of ,ndia during ,ndira 2andhi


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throughout the year! and must repay their grain loans over a four0year period. The grain0bank

programme is one e/ample of a positive step for rural development and a legitimate alternative

to falling into the trap of debt bondage.

The *4; was founded as part of ,ndia


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future success! as establishing a presence in multiple locations will spread awareness of their

campaign against debt bondage.

The ,53 (,nternational 5abor 3rgani6ation) promotes microfinance initiatives as potentiallypreventative measures against debt bondage. The ,53market

solution< to the problem of poverty and increasingly greater integration of *23s into the +icro

Kinance Qas the new approach to poverty eradication has resulted in abandonment of >human

right< and >8ustice< based interventions! seriously undermining the potential for eradication of

bonded labor.


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Eradia&in( Ca*&e

The ,ndian government is often silent on the issue of internal social ineuality! so the following

public analogy by ,ndia


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"nother important outh "frican lesson applicable to the dissolution of caste in ,ndia is that

change must be accomplished through negotiation rather than violence. 4igher castes have often

succeeded in keeping lower castes down through the use of violence! which perpetuates the

current conflict and inhibits social progress.

,n contrast with "partheid in outh "frica! Untouchability in ,ndia is outlawed by the country


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Ca*e S&0die*4

Na&ional a*e *&0d34 T)e a*e of %onded la%orer* in %ri5 5iln ind0*&r3 of

So0&)ea*& India

Rer0i&en& -roe** for la%orer*

rick kiln industry is a labor intensive industry. easonality of brick making process! which

depends on the monsoon season! implies it produces only with seasonal migrant workers of rural

areas. ,n the state of Tamil *adu! brick kilns' migrant workers are mainly from Billipuram and

+adurai cities. +igration is intrastate contrarily to *ew Delhi where brick kilns workers arefrom other states (2upta! ?AAF)! which is also the case in the sugarcane industry (reman! #$-IC

hukuth et al.! ?AA%). ;ogaly et al. (?AA#) found also intrastate migration in est engal! ,ndia.

Therefore! in their study! seasonal migrants move without labor broker. They migrate in little

group of five persons. ,n the brick kiln industry of Tamil *adu! workers migrate through brokers.

,n this industry! laborers cannot be recruited without brokersC they are recruited through the

advance system.

5aborers need this advance to survive in the village! which is their only resource in an

environment characteri6ed by adult unemployment. They do not have any other possibility to

survive e/cept by contracting debt from the labor broker. The advance system procures someadvantages to laborers. They receive an advance which is free of interest! they also have the

opportunity to work a part of the season and during the nonworking season the advance permits

them to consume. The counterpart of the system is the payment of the debt by working in brick

kilns. The risk of the advance system is to fall into bondage. ,f a worker is unable to repay his

debt entirely he is in a bondage situation. 4e has to come back the ne/t season to clear his debt

under the same broker and at the same brick kiln. 4ence! a laborer is bonded once she=he takes

an advance and in return she=he has to work for the creditor to repay his=her debt. "ccording to

this definition of bonded labor! brick kiln workers are bonded laborers.

rokers recruit laborers from a familiar environment: family members! caste appurtenance! andneighborhood. They recruit those upon whom they have a psychological and monetary influence.

3wing to this influence! these people are easily manageable. ,n brick kiln they can work without

making any trouble! for instance they will not claim for higher wages. y recruiting vulnerable

laborers! the ultimate aim of employers is to work with docile and manageable workers who do

not have any bargaining power to influence the formation of wage. 5aborers who are indebted to


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the broker cannot ask for higher wages! it is disrespectful visRvis the broker to do so! because

the latter provides them for money when they do not work.

,n this industry! brokers are also responsible for their laborers since employers do not care of

them. "ll the working affairs are dealt with the intermediary of broker.

T)e nee**i&3 of )ild la%or in &)e 6or5in( -roe**

,n this industry! due to physical constraints adults are more productive than children. rokers

recruit only couple of adult composed of a man and his wife! or two men! rarely two women. "

man alone is never recruited. Despite the recruiting process of adults! child labor is a common

figure of brick kilns. 4owever! as children cannot be productive enough to enhance the

employer's competitiveness in the labor market! brokers never recruit children alone. hildren

work with their parents. "s parents do not have anybody to monitor and to take care of them in

their village! they migrate with their children.

hildren are found working only in molding process. The work is organi6ed as a home based

enterprise. hild labor is used to increase the family productivity. ontrary to other kinds of

family enterprises child labor is not used to reduce the cost of labor but it is implemented to

increase the price of labor.

The piece rate system is applied to remunerate brick kiln workers. They are paid a weekly wage!

%A percent of the wage being for the clearance of the debt and the remaining %A percent for the

consumption. The ob8ective of the household is twofold: improving its living standard in the

brick kiln and to return home with e/tramoney. ,f at the end of the season the household has

paid more than the debt token it would return home with e/tramoney.

" household who have cleared its debt increases its bargaining power to deal higher amount of

advance. ,n this conte/t! by improving the household productivity! child labor becomes a mean

to bargain higher amount of advance. ,n our ualitative research we found household comprisingchildren older than seven years old can ask for higher advance. Kor a couple the minimum

amount of advance given is ;s %!AAA! this amount increases with the productivity of the

household! in other words! the advance depend indirectly to the presence of child labor. The

ma/imum amount of advance can reach ;s #%!AAA?A!AAA for the households who have two to

three children of I#1 years old. hildren above #1 are considered as adults! so they can take

their own advance.


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,n our case! child labor is used to increase the bargaining power of household and the household

productivity. Kor parents! child labor mainly prevents the household from falling into bondage. ,n

fact the risk of falling into bondage is high because workers are illiterate! they do not really pay

attention to the amount of debt token and the amount of debt repaid. The clearance of the debtdepends on the workerbroker relationship and honesty of brokers. ,f a worker is not good in

term with his broker the latter will bond him. 2enerally! productive workers are not bonded since

they entertain close relationship with the broker. "s children increase household productivity!

child labor constitutes a kind of insurance both for parents and brokers. ithout child labor a lot

of families will fall into a dynamic process of debt bondage. ,n such form of recruitment! child

labor is clearly complementary to adult labor.

In&erna&ional a*e *&0d34 Co-leen&ari&3 of ad0l&)ild la%or and -oli3i-lia&ion*

hild labor in the brick kiln industry is not a substitute for adult labor. 3thers studies draw same

conclusion. Kor instance! a study carried out by ockburn (?AAA) in 7thiopia! shows that the

probability for a child to work is high when the household owns an asset like land or a family

business. ,n fact! in these kinds of enterprises child labor is not in competition with adult labor.

Thus! parents in homebased activities use child labor to increase household's earning. ,n

activities like homebased enterprises! child labor is complementary to adult labor. "ll the familymembers' labor is used to increase the household productivity.

The hypothesis of substitutability of asu and Ban holds in marketoriented enterprises having a

special vocation to e/port their product in the international market but it does not hold in the case

of domestic activities! family enterprises and farms. tudies on child labor show the evidence

that child labor is mainly a rural phenomenon and more than %A percent of working children are

involved in farm activities (halotra and 4eady! ?AAFC ;ay! ?AA?). Therefore! very few children

(% percent of total working children) work in the formal sector (achman! ?AAA! ?AA1)! most of

them are employed in the informal sector! in subcontracting family enterprises (+ehrotra and

iggeri! ?AA?C harma et al.! ?AAA).

,mplications for policies are not marginal since most of children work in complementarity with

their parents. The main policy discussion rests on banning child labor.


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Ineffiien3 of )ild la%or %an

,f we consider that child labor is a perfect substitute for adult labor! a ban of child labor will have

a positive impact on adult labor. ,ndeed! the ban will reduce the demand of child labor and

conseuently will increase the wage of adults in the labor market. The wage of adults will be

sufficiently high to prevent parents from using child labor for survival purposes. This kind of

policy has led to more skeptical analysis! for instance! Dessy and @allage (?AA%) on the worst

form of child labor. ,n the same way! according to 7dmonds and @avcnik (?AAF)! in the case of

Bietnam! the liberali6ation of the rice market between #$$F and #$$I engendered a

supplementary flu/ of income for households! most of them are producers of rice.

This policy involved for the same period a decrease of ?A percent of child labor. The increase of

income from the liberali6ation of the international trade allowed households to rely less on child

labor. ,n contrario! a decrease of adult income could involve an increase of child labor. ,n such a

situation! a ban on child labor could provoke a decrease of income for some families! involving

also an increase of the number of working children.

The hypothesis of complementarity leads to consider such a conclusion. The ban will be

relatively inefficient. ,ndeed! a ban will not affect the domestic sector. Therefore! the reduction of

income for some families provoked by the ban will oblige them to increase the number of

working children in other forms of activities! particularly in home based activities (asu and

Ban! #$$I). hild labor constituting a vital necessity for certain families! they will be obliged to

increase the number of children they will send to work. "s we have described earlier in this

paper! child labor is used to prevent family from falling into bondage. ,f this support is removed!

families who are in a situation of chronic poverty will be deeply affected by such a policy. That

is the case of families involved in bricks production.

7ven if brick kiln industry is market oriented! child labor is complementary to adult labor

because bricks' production are organi6ed as a homebased enterprise.


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Role* of NGO*

Kew *23s having the aim of freeing bonded labor lead active action without taking into

consideration the family background! the reason why laborers work in such a situation and why

children work with their parents. "ctions of freeing these laborers are more detrimental than

beneficial because with such an action the trustworthiness relationship between laborers and

brokers is no more e/isting. *evertheless! *23s can play an active role in solving the problem

of bondage and of child labor. Their roles could be diversC first they can supply non formal

education to parents! which consists of teaching basic mathematical skills. 7ducated parents can

use this skill to monitor the manager's records in order to prevent them from cheating whileclearing the debt. ,n this case! productive workers can return home with e/tramoney. ith this

money workers can buy lands or some assets! which will oblige them to stay in the village. They

will rely more on their assets to survive and less on the advance system. This policy will not end

the phenomenon of child labor but will improve the wealth of households. Their living

conditions improving! they will not have any incentive to send their children to the labor market.

They will invest in their children's education.

econdly! there is a discontinuity in the schooling of children who repeat classes from years to

years. Those who are over #A years old leave school by their own because they find no utility to

attain school. To encourage children attaining school! *23s with the participation ofgovernment can supply vocational training to children in order to permit them in acuiring

specific technical skills. ith such a skill children becoming adult will not have to move for

brick kilns. This kind of skill is necessary in ,ndian villages where the caste system is prominent

scheduled.


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S0ar3

omprised of a compilation and assessment of the contemporary evidence on bonded labor in

,ndia that has appeared in secondary sources! this report demonstrates that new forms of bondage

have emerged in modern agricultural and informal sectors of the economy. ocial movements!

economic moderni6ation! and state intervention have helped to engender a reduction of bonded

labor in traditional agricultural settings and in caste0based! long0duration relationships. The

report includes recent academic literature! data from the 2overnment of ,ndia! the *ational

4uman ;ights ommission! other human rights organi6ations! and press reportsLall of which

contribute to a widely varied bibliography. The review of ,ndian constitutional law and upremeourt rulings on the nature of bonded labor is e/ceptionally specific. "s an up0to0date survey of

the incidence of labor bondage! a widely differentiated practice that is difficult to uantify and

verify! the report provides a clear and comprehensive overview.

"n unspoken consensus e/ists among ,ndia

Social and Legal Issues Report

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