Nazmul lives with her family in the slums of Okhla in New Delhi, India. Her home sits in an industrial zone, surrounded by open sewers.
After Nazmul has finished her chores, she works with her family, cutting and sewing clothing for the garment industry. Nazmul is nine years old.
“I have to hold the thread and cut it. Once I was cutting the thread and I hurt my finger and after that I put a bandage on it.” Nazmul, 9 years old.
New Delhi is a major hub of garment manufacturing for export. Because Indian law bans the labour of children under the age of 14, many work from home. They are part of a hidden workforce.
“I used to make clothing and I used to cut the threads. I used to work for one hour a day. Because my father tells me, I used to the housework. I used to feel good because I was helping my.” Nazmul, 9 years old.
For children like Nazmul, going to school isn’t an option. About 168 million children around the world are engaged in child labour. More than half of those are involved in hazardous work. Some children need to work to help feed their families, but other parents don’t see education as being relevant to their child’s future.
In 2011, Save the Children began working in four child labour hotspots across New Delhi. One of them was in Okhla, where Nazmul lives. Nazmul now attends the Rainbow Centre, an education facility supported by Save the Children.
“My friend Jyoti told me about the Save the Children Rainbow centre. She asked me to come and now I get tuition and I like it a lot.”
Save The Children is trying to reconnect children with education. We are also working to provide vocational skills to 15-18 year olds, and educating families and the community about child labour.