PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT ON CHILD WORKERS: A STUDY OF DISTRICT ANANTNAG 1.

Introduction
Children are, metaphorically considered as the blooming buds of the garden of the society. Wordsworth, the famous British Romantic poet saw child as the father of Man in that the future of any human generation depends on the well being of its children. As such the children are the most important asset of the nation and thus they need to be protected against any exploitation that might expose them to any threat, both physical and psychological. Child labour is one such modern menace. Child labour has been defined as a severe problem that the world in general and the third world in particular faces in the dawn of 21 st century. Children are engaged in diverse forms of economic activities in the developing countries. In India about 150 Million children of age group five to 14 are working in various industries in India. They are found working in road-side restaurants, tea stalls and shops, at construction sites and in factories. Girls suffer labour exploitation to such a degree that million of girls die before they reach the age of 15. The problem of child labour, if not severe, is rampant in the state of Jammu and Kashmir as well. According to news paper article published in 2005, in Jammu and Kashmir, about 1.4 % of the total labour population was reported to be children. This makes child labour an issue of concern. The child labour snatches the beauty of childhood from the life of children and thus hampers their natural growth and well being. Two schools of thought have tried to define child labour. One defines child labour by marking a distinction between child labour and child work. While this school out rightly banishes child labour as immoral, they consider child work less harmful as it adds to the economy of the poor families. The distinction, however, seems irrational as in both cases the child is exposed to unnatural and hazardous conditions that deprive the child of all the blessings. The other school of thought considers all forms of child labour as immorality perpetuated by the society. They advise the eradication of all forms of child labour.

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2. Statement of the Problem and Research Questions

The childhood is the most important period of life. The child-life is a hiding place of mans` power where man must seek it with all his mature faculties. Our tradition asserts that Home is the best school and parents are the first and best teachers. This thought has been a continuous source of inspiration for our society to protect the creative and spirited life of the child. However, today, the situation is absolutely averse. Due to economic instability, many families force their children to work. This produces restlessness and stress in small kids which is something very strange but a harsh truth, which was not existent in past times. When our parents or their parents tells how easy, joyful and carefree their childhood was, it seems to our coming generations as a fairy tale, not possible in these days. Erich Fromm once said that the danger of the past was that men became slaves but the danger of the future is that men may become robots, and that is what we are beginning to face. Children are deprived of their basic rights and forced to live a life of penury and depravation.

3. Need, importance and relevance of the study

The issue of working children has been addressed by the government through various plans, policies and laws. The issue has also been taken up by many NGOs and academic studies. However, there are still many work places which imply a psychological, physical, and economic misuse and abuse of children in Kashmir. The propensity of the hazards in the informal sector is by no means less than that in the formal sector where the physical and psychological well-being of children had been routinely compromised. In Kashmir, where, according to 1990 census, more than 33 percent of the people live in some form of poverty, many families are unable to fulfill the basic needs which compel them to engage their children in jobs at an early age. Children as well as their parents have no interest in education as they think that education is not a real life necessity. Furthermore, poor schooling is often attributed to child labour in Kashmir, especially as there is a severe deficiency in proper schooling facilities in many remote areas, particularly in rural areas. The issue of child labour in Kashmir has been a subject of many academic studies which have primarily focused on the physical and social aspects of the child labour. However, there has been little advance in ascertaining the psychological dimension of the child labour. This

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study would like to bridge this epistemological gap in the present literature on child labour in Jammu and Kashmir. This study would be primarily undertaken to examine the psychological implications of child labour in Anantnag city.

4. Objectives
The primary objective of the study is to examine to what extent child labour causes psychological discomfort. On the basis of this inquiry and analysis the study attempts to (i) Generate an overall idea about the extent and different forms of child labour in Kashmir, and (ii) Identify psychological causes of child workers.

5. Design, and tools of the study The main focus of the study would be to see the incidence of child labour in Anantnag town. The variables used would be socio-economic and psychological. The study shall be descriptive in nature and thus carried under normative principles. The sample of the present study shall comprise of 70 children, 35 of them from those who are child workers and 35 from those who are not child workers. The age group would be 6-14 years. Both school going boys and girls would be taken up using the random sampling method. The tools that shall be employed to carry out the study would include information blanks that the investigator shall develop after making initial survey; Dr. Raj Kumar Saraswati`s self concept questionnaire; Chaterji`s interest scale; Dr. Pal and Dr. Tawari`s intelligence scale; and Creativity test developed by B.K Passi.