Two Kalka shopkeepers booked for employing minors

In January, the district child protection unit, Panchkula, and members of the district task force team against child labour, Panchkula, had conducted surprise inspections at several shops in Kalka

Four months after two teenagers employed at Kalka shops were rescued, police have now booked their employers.

The children were produced before the Child Welfare Committee on January 5, where both teenagers had revealed that they were forced to work for 11 hours daily. (Getty Images)

Those booked are Gaurav Bhalla, owner of Nathu Ram Jyoti Parshad Bartan Shop, and Gaurav Ghai, owner of Super Shoes, Kalka.

The case was registered under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act at the Kalka police station following the directions of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Panchkula.

In January, the district child protection unit, Panchkula, and members of the district task force team against child labour, Panchkula, had conducted surprise inspections at several shops in Kalka. During the raid, they had rescued two 13-year-old boys employed at the aforementioned shops.

The children were produced before the CWC on January 5, where both teenagers had revealed that they were forced to work for 11 hours daily.

The boy working at the utensils shop had been working for 45 days for a monthly wage of ₹5,000 before being rescued, while the boy working at the shoe shop had been employed for a month and was being paid ₹6,000 monthly. They were subsequently sent to the Child Care Institute.