Bonded labour is a form of labour arrangement whereby people are made to work for long hours and for very little or no wages without the freedom to seek any other employment until they clear their debt. It is most prevalent in rural areas where the agricultural industry relies on local, contracted, and also migrant labourers.
Bonded labour is a form of exploitation.
It is considered by the U.N. to be “one of the most prevalent forms of modern slavery in all regions of the world”.
Today, according to The Global Slavery Index, 18,354,700 people in India are estimated to be living in modern slavery. Around the world, this number raises to 45.8 million people.
This is how bonded labour works:
The person takes a loan from a wealthy landowner for personal reasons, often these are linked to hospital or marriage expenses and basic survival needs. These loans generally come with high interest rates.
Any amount asked towards their basic survival is again added to the loan. The family is entrapped in a never ending cycle of taking loans and making repayments.
He/she has to repay the loan by working on the land/ farmhouse/ industry/house of the creditors. Sometimes, entire families have to join to repay the loan. They usually work for 12-16 hours a day and do not have holidays.
The entire year’s wages earned are considered as repayment towards the loan. Thus, nothing remains to be taken home at the end of the year.