Case primary details

Fact finding date

Case Incident details

Case summary

(1)  Sh. Dinesh S/o Sh. Rajveer resident of Village-Shellinagar, Police Station- Aahar, Sub- Division-Anukshehar, District-Bulandshehar (U.P),has filed a Self Declaration to the above mentioned social action group which revealed that:-

(a)  That he belongs to the Balmiki caste, which has been declared as Scheduled Caste by the State Government of Uttar Pradesh.

(b)  That Dinesh and his family members, whose names are mentioned in Annexure A, were employed since the last five years at the Brick Kiln which issituatedin Village-Pastah, Sub-Division-Phagwara, District-Kapurthla, Punjab, whose present owner is Raja. This firm is a Brick Manufacturing Factory. The workers were employed as Brick Moulder. He is in debt bondage and made a request to liberate himself and his family members from bonded debt.

(c)  That the brick kiln owner advanced the bonded debt of Rs.5000 (Rupees Five Thousand) at the time of employment, at this brick kiln. The owner Raja did not provide them their hard earned wages and after their five year’s work, when they have demanded their wages from him, then he has refused to give them their wages, even on the other side he has demanded the bonded debt from them and pressurize them to accumulate their household items and left the kiln. So in those deplorable circumstances, they were forced to left the brick kiln and finally they have taken their household items from the kiln and left this kiln and went some other brick kiln.

(d)  That after their five year’s work with the previous employer Raja, they were employed at some other brick kiln which is situated at Village- Naroodh Pastah, Sub-Division-Phagwara, District- Kapurthla, whose present owner is Jaspal. The workers were employed as Brick Moulder at this brick kiln. They were brought to this present brick kiln by the agent (Jamadar) of this brick kiln named Madhi. At the time of employment, the agent (Jamadar) Madhi has given assurance to the worker Dinesh that, if he would have work with his family members, at this brick kiln then he will help them in getting the financial assistance from the brick kiln owner during the time period of his daughter’s marriage ceremony and will also help them in getting the advance amount from the owner. So after believing on the assurance given by the agent, the worker Dinesh has brought his family members at this Brick Kiln for the purpose of doing work as Brick Moulder (Pathera). After that the brick kiln owner Jaspal and the agent Madhi did not provide them their earned wages, even did not provide any financial assistance during the period of their daughter’s marriage.

(e)  That the workers at this present brick kiln are expected mould at least 1500 bricks in one day working for 12 – 16 hours a day.

(f)   That there is no facility of clean water, sanitation, toilets and washing facilities at the brick kiln.

(g)  That the brick kiln owner did not pay them their earned wages and only paid them Rs.1000 or Rs.1500 after fifteen days and since then there has been no further payment of wages.

(h)That during the time of their employment at this brick kiln, the brick kiln worker Dinesh has fallen sick and got admitted in the hospital for his treatment. When his wife Babita has demanded money from the owner for his treatment, then the owner refused to give them any money and did not provide any financial assistance for his medical treatment.

(i)   That after discharging from the hospital, the brick kiln workers have again demanded money from the owner for his treatment, but the owner always neglected his duty to provide medical facilities and expenses to the brick kiln workers and instead of providing money for his further medical treatment and medicines, he has given threats to them to left his employment, vacate the premises provided by him at his kiln and has also imposed the bonded debt upon them. After that, the employer has called the police officials and has forcibly thrown away the household items of the workers with the help of the police officials. So the brick kiln owner has created such pathetic situations, that the workers were forced to taking their household items from the brick kiln and left the brick kiln.

(j)    That after this incident, the workers have no place for their residence and one workmate named Bachni has brought Raju and his family members at her home and now they are wandering here and there for their accommodation.

(k)  That, now the brick kiln owner is demanding the bonded debt from the workers, instead of the paying the workers their due wages as per the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

(l)   That now the brick kiln owner is harassing workers and has abused and threatened them saying, if they do not pay his debt amount then the brick kiln owner will kill them and will also lodge false and vexatious complaints against them.

(2)  That, the facts narrated in Paragraph 2, it is clear that the workers mentioned in Annexure A were subjected to the bonded labour system as defined under S. 2 (g) of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 [“BLSAA”]. The employer has extracted labour from the workers in lieu of the debt advance paid to them. Thereafter the workers were forced to work for wages well below the minimum wages. The owner was forcibly throwing away the household items of the workers and now they are wandering here and there for their accommodation and facing starving like situations. Due to such deprivation and starvation, the workers had no other choice but to escape from the brick kiln. The workers continue to be in debt bondage in spite of having left the employment.

(3)  That, the brick kiln owner is in violation of The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Condition of Service) Act, 1979 having recruited workers without providing them decent working conditions as mandated under the said Act.

(4)  That, the brick kiln owner is also in violation of The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 as Section 3 (1) (vi) makes luring members of scheduled castes and extracting bonded labour a punishable offence.

(5)  That no such complaint has been earlier made to this Honorable Commission or any other commission or any court of law according to the information received from the victims.