Indian police rescue 17 children employed illegally

By RISHABH R. JAIN
Associated Press

NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police accompanied by activists from a children’s rights group have raided automobile repair shops on the edge of New Delhi and removed 17 children who were employed illegally. Activists from the Save the Children Movement, whose founder was co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014, went from shop to shop and removed children whose hands, clothes and feet were smeared with grease. The group helps authorities prosecute people employing young children. Children under age 14 are not allowed to work in India except in family businesses and farms. Employers can face up to two years in prison. A coronavirus lockdown iast year pushed millions of people into poverty, encouraging the trafficking of children from villages to cities for cheap labor.