Bhubaneswar: Describing child labour as a social evil that deprives children and adolescents of their fundamental right to education and hampers their overall development, chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Friday launched a statewide 44-day ‘Child labour-free panchayat’ campaign.The CM urged people to join hands in eliminating the child labour and ensuring every child’s right to education.“Child labour is a social malady. To make Odisha free from child labour, our govt has taken a historic pledge. A 44-day campaign has been launched across every panchayat to make them child labour-free,” Majhi said in a video message.He added that ending child labour is not solely the responsibility of the govt or administration but requires collective participation from society. “The real progress of our children is the primary goal of our society. Every citizen must contribute to this effort,” he said.The campaign will be conducted with a focus on identifying and preventing child labour, promoting school education and creating awareness about children’s rights.The CM called upon people to support the initiative actively and help create an environment where every child can pursue education and realise their aspirations.“Let us work together to make Odisha a child labour-free state where every child can dream and successfully achieve those,” Majhi said.By conducting special gram sabhas on Friday, a resolution was adopted for the socio-economic transformation and all-round development of rural areas, where eliminating child labour was a goal.Moreover, to eradicate social evils such as child marriage and labour, morning rallies and awareness campaigns were organised across villages.
