Filing a Complaint against Child Labour

Yes, employing children as full-time domestic help counts as child labor and is illegal under Indian law, even if the parents consent. Under Section 3(1) of THE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT LABOUR (PROHIBITION AND REGULATION) ACT, 1986, no child shall be employed or permitted to work in any occupation or process. This includes domestic work, which is not an exception under the law. Therefore, full-time domestic work by a child would fall under this prohibition. This particular form of work is not excepted under Section 3(2) of the act, Section 3(2)(a) of the act allows children to help their family or family enterprise in non-hazardous work, but only after school hours or during vacations. Full-time domestic work in someone else’s home would not qualify under this exception because it is not family-related work, and due to the work being full-time, it interferes with the child’s education. Moreover, even if a parent consents to their child working as full-time domestic help, this does not make it legal. The law prioritizes the protection of children over parental consent in such matters.

Firstly, if you feel comfortable, you could politely explain your situation to the lady or the temple authorities. They might be willing to lower the volume or change the timing. If that does not work, you could file a complaint with the local authorities, given the noise exceeds the limits.

The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 deal with noise pollution in residential and other areas. In residential areas, the limits are 55 dB(A) in the daytime and 45 dB(A) in the nighttime. When any of the provisions of the Rules are being violated, a complaint can be filed with the authority decided by the State Pollution Control Board – usually the local authorities like the municipal corporation at the first instance. In the present case, since the lady at the temple performs loudly in the evening and at night, it gives rise to a cause of action for you to file a complaint with the concerned authority for violations of the above Rules.

To find the relevant authority, check the list available on the CPCB website titled “Authority List for Implementation of Noise Rules” <https://cpcb.nic.in/displaypdf.php?id=Tm9pc2UtU3RhbmRhcmRzL0F1dGhvcml0eUxpc3QucGRm>. Moreover, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has designated the District Magistrate, along with the Police Commissioner and other officers not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police, to ensure compliance with the Noise Pollution Rules, 2000.

Noise pollution is also addressed in criminal law through Section 290 of the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, 2023 which deals with public nuisance. You can also file a civil suit by approaching the nearest District Court to complain about the noise pollution, where the Court can temporarily stop/remove the nuisance through injunctions or orders.