Jamia Millia Islamia

Faculty of Law
Semester IV

Law and Poverty

Topic : Bonded Labour

Submitted To : Submitted By :

Mr. Rasheed CA Dilshad Ahmed

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 Table of Contents

S.No. Topic Page No.

1. Acknowledgement 03
2. Introduction 04
3. Bonded Labour 04 – 06
4. Origin of Bonded Labour in India 06 – 07
5. Forced Labour and Bonded Labour 07
6. The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) 07 – 08
Act,1976
7. Constitutional and Legal Provision 09
8. Bandhua Mukti Morcha 10
9. Conclusion 11

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I'm very much thankful to Mr. Rashid Sir to gave me a golden opportunity to allow
me to represent Law and Poverty project topic as my own wish. I've experienced
alot from this project. And I am also very much thankful to my best friend to help
me in making of this project.I have covered the topic BONDED LABOUR very
well in this project and try to explain the concept of BONDED LABOUR,
Bandhua Mukti Morcha and various acts related to Bonded Labour.

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INTRODUCTION
The origin of bonded labour can be traced from the caste hierarchy and feudal
structure. In earlier times the people were divided into four categories i.e. Brahmin,
Kshatriya, vaishya and shudra. Since the lower caste persons did not have enough
land to cultivate, they needed money for fulfillment of social obligations besides
satisfaction of their physiological needs and for this purpose they become indebted
to the higher caste persons. As the debtor has nothing to offer as security, the
creditor demanded that he pledges his person and work for the creditor in lieu of
the redemption of debt and interest. Guarantee of a permanent source of cheap
labour on a long term basis was the main interest of the money lender.

BONDED LABOUR
Bonded labour (or debt bondage) occurs when a person’s labour is demanded in
return for a loan. The person is then tricked into working for little or no pay. The
value of their work is usually greater than the original loan. In many cases the loan
is passed down from parent to child. Female bonded labourers will often be subject
to sexual abuse by their ‘employer’. Around 20 million people are estimated to be
in bonded labour worldwide. Bonded labour is most likely to exist in situations of
poverty where an unexpected expense such as medical costs or a marriage dowry
forces an individual to borrow. Bonded labourers are usually unable to defend their
rights or are bound by a misplaced sense of duty to repay the debt owed by their
family1.

1
International Journal of Technical Research (IJTR)
Vol. 3, Issue 1, Mar-Apr 2014

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Bonded labour is probably the least known form of slavery today, and yet it is the
most widely used method of enslaving people. A person becomes a bonded
labourer when their labour is demanded as a means of repayment for a loan. The
person is then tricked or trapped into working for very little or no pay.
Bonded labour is prohibited in India by law vide Articles 21 and 23 of the
Constitution. A specific law to prohibit the practice was legislated only in 1976
known as the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act. With the commencement of
the Act the following consequences followed: bonded labourers stand freed and
discharged from any obligation to render to bonded labour. All customs, traditions,
contracts, agreements or instruments by virtue of which a person or any member of
family dependent on such person is required to render bonded labour shall be
void2.

According to sec.2 (e)[1], bonded labour means any labour or service rendered
under the bonded labour system. Bonded labourer under sec.2 (f) means a labourer
who incurs, or has, or presumed to have incurred a bonded debt.

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 [Article 2(i)] : The term forced or compulsory
labour shall mean all work or service, which is exacted, from any person under the
menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself
voluntarily3.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights -The General Assembly of the United
Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Article 44 says: “No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and slave
trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.”
UN Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery (1956) — Under this
2
ARTICLE ON BONDED LABOUR, Dr. Krishan Kumar Kajal
3
Forced Labour Convention, 1930
4
Universal Declaration of Human Rights

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Convention debt bondage is defined as “the status or condition arising from a
pledge by a debtor of his personal service or those of a person under his control as
security for a debt, if the value of those services as reasonably assessed is not
applied toward the liquidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services
are not respectively limited and defined”.

As per I.L.O. Report on Stopping Forced Labour (2001)5 : The term ( Bonded
Labour) refers to a worker who rendered service under condition of bondage
arising from economic consideration, notably indebtedness through a loan or an
advance. Where debt is the root cause of bondage, the implication is that the
worker (or dependents or heirs) is tied to a particular creditor

Origin of Bonded Labour System in India

In India, bonded labour system finds its genesis in country’s peculiar socio-
economic culture. Like various other social evils prevailing in India, bonded labour
is also an off-shoot of our Caste-system. Mainly, it is person belonging to the so-
called higher castes such as Rajput and Brahmins who are the exploiters and
person belonging to the so-called lower castes such as Sudras who are the
exploited.

Due to their weak economic and social conditions within the society, the SC/STs,
Dalits are forced to sell their labours for nominal or no remuneration to the village
landlord or moneylender. It’s a practice continuing from ancient times and in some
parts of the country is still prevalent.

5
ILO’s World Employment Report 2001.

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Furthermore, lack of livelihood options; large families; poor education level and
lack of awareness among Dalits make their condition worse. Sometimes force or
coercion is also used by powerful landlords to make bonded labor contracts.

Thus, basically it is an exploitative practice roots of which lie in vast inequalities

and disparities existing in social, economic and cultural aspects of India .

FORCED LABOUR AND BONDED LABOUR

Forced and compulsory labour, defined as “all work or service which is exacted
from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person
has not offered himself voluntarily”, is prohibited under the International Labour
Organisation Conventions 29 and 159, both of which India has ratified. Forced
labour is also prohibited under Article 236 of the Constitution of India, whilst the
Indian Penal Code prohibits trafficking for the purpose of physical exploitation as
well as unlawful compulsory labour.

Bonded labour is the primary form of forced labour in India, and is specifically
prohibited under the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act7. Under this Act, a
bonded labourer is defined as a person who has entered into an agreement to
provide labour in forced circumstances.

As per the Bonded Labour System

(Abolition) Act,1976 :
“bonded labour” means any labour or service rendered under the bonded labour
system section 2(e).
6
The Constitution of India
7
The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act,1976

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It means a labourer who incurs, or has, or is presumed to have incurred a
bonded debt, 2(f).
It means the system of forced, or partly forced, labour under which a debtor enters,
or has, or is presumed to have, entered, into an agreement with the creditor to the
effect considering:

i. render, by himself or through any member of his family, or any person

dependent on him, labour or service to the creditor, or for the benefit of the
creditor, for a specified period or for any unspecified period, either without
wages or for nominal wages,
ii. For freedom of employment or other means of livelihood for a specified
period or otherwise.
iii. Forfeit the right to move freely throughout the territory of India, or
iv. forfeit the right to appropriate or sell at market value any of his property or
product of his labour or the labour of a member of his family or any person
dependent on him;
and includes the system of forced, or partly forced, labour under which a surety
for a debtor enters, or has, or is presumed to have, entered, into an agreement
with the creditor to the effect that in the event of the failure of the debtor to
repay the debt, he would render the bonded labour on debtor’s behalf. Through
its various judgments, Supreme Court has given a very broad, liberal and
expansive interpretation of the definition of the bonded labour. According to the
interpretation given by the apex court, where a person provided labour or
service to another for remuneration less than the minimum wage, the labour or
service falls clearly within the scope and ambit of the words forced labour
under the constitution8.

8
The Constitution of India

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Constitutional and Legal Provisions
The Constitution of India

The Constitution of India guarantees all its citizens-justice, social, economic and
political; freedom or thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; equity of status
and opportunity and fraternity, dignity of individual and unity of the Nation.
Under Article 239, Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour -
Traffic in human beings and begar and other similar forms of forced labour are
prohibited and any contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable
in accordance with law. Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from
imposing compulsory service for public purposes, and in imposing such service the
State shall not make any discrimination on grounds only on religion, race, caste or
class or any of them.
Under Article 42, Provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternity
relief - The State shall make provision for securing just and humane conditions of
work
Under Article 43, Living wage, etc. for workers - The State shall endeavour to
secure, by suitable legislation or economic organization or in any other way, to all
workers, agricultural, industrial or otherwise, work and living wage, conditions of
work ensuring a decent standard of life and full enjoyment of leisure and social and
cultural opportunities and, in particular the State shall endeavour to promote
cottage industrial on an individual or co-operative basis in rural areas.

9
The Constitution of India

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BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA
Bandhua Mukti Morcha (BMM) or Bonded Labour Liberation Front (BLLF) is a
non-governmental organisation in India working to end bonded labour. Based in
New Delhi, it was founded in 1981 by Swami Agnivesh who continues as its
chairman.
Bonded labour was legally abolished in India in 197610 but remains prevalent, with
weak enforcement of the law by state governments. Estimates of the problem vary.
Official figures include a 1993 estimate of 251,000 bonded labourers[1] while
BMM says there are 20 - 65 million bonded labourers. A 2003 project by Human
Rights Watch has reported a major problem with bonded child labour in the silk
industry.

10
The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act,1976

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CONCLUSION
Bonded labour exists because of the persistence of poverty, widespread
discrimination making large groups of people vulnerable to exploitation and the
existence of people who are prepared to exploit the desperation of others. The need
for cash for daily survival forces people to sell their labour in exchange for a lump
sum of money or a loan. In South East Asia bonded labour is rooted in the caste
system and predominately affects Dalits.
Despite the fact that bonded labour is illegal governments are rarely willing to
enforce the law, or to ensure that those who profit from it are punished.
Widespread discrimination against some social groups means they have limited
access to justice, education and ways to get themselves out of poverty which is one
of the main reasons the debt is taken in the first place.
Bonded labour has existed for hundreds of years. Debt bondage was used to trap
indentured labourers into working on plantations in Africa, the Caribbean and
South-East Asia.
In South Asia it still flourishes in agriculture, brick kilns, mills and factories. In the
Punjab region of India hundreds of thousands men, women and children are forced
to work as bonded labourers in quarries and brick kilns where they receive little or
no pay in return
Today the International Labour Organisation estimates a minimum 11.7 million
people are in forced labour in the Asia-Pacific region, the majority of these are in
debt bondage.

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