Although the bonded labour system was legally abolished 30 years ago, till date only 2,86,245 have been released and 4,859 employers prosecuted. A National Convention on Bonded Labour was called on 10–11 March 2007 to highlight the plight of bonded labour in the present situation and to seek a recommitment by various stakeholders to address these issues. On the first day, about 500 participants gathered at the Desh Bhagat Yadgar Hall, Jalandhar, and unanimously gave a call to review the Bonded Labour System Abolition Act, 1976 and ensure its strict enforcement, asserting that, “Nobody is free till everybody is free.”

Speaking on the occasion, J. John, Executive Director of Centre for Education and Communication (CEC), explained the current situation of bonded labour in India by focusing on the study conducted by CEC in eight states of India. The studies have found that though traditional forms of bonded labour exist, it has taken new forms in the changing context of Indian agriculture and in the integration of various sectors in the global production processes. Analysing the present situation of bonded labour in India, he said that in the current context of India emerging as an economic superpower, bonded labour is a blemish on its pride. He looked at the Bonded Labour System Abolition Act (BLSAA) critically.

While addressing the gathering, Asha Shukla, Assistant Editor, Nav Bharat, Raipur, discussed the plight of the children of bonded, migrant workers. If both husband and wife migrate, they perforce get their 10- or 14-year-old daughter married in order to leave her at a safe place. This has resulted in rampant increase of child marriages in many districts of Chhattisgarh.

Pradip Prabhu (Kasthakari Sanghatan), Gopal Iyer (Retd. Professor Punjab University), Suneet Chopra (Joint Secretary of All India Agricultural Workers’ Union), Ram Singh (Secretary, Democratic Front), Advocates Ashok Agarwal, Veena Kumari, Vipin Mathew Benjamin and Jagjivan Singh,  Kiran Kamal Prasad (Director, Jeeta Vimukti, Karnataka), S.N. Gardia (Chairperson, Jan Jagriti Kendra, Chhattisgarh), Abhay Xaxa (Project officer, Centre for Education and Communication) and others addressed the gathering.

Prior to the Convention, on 9 March, after a public meeting, about 5,000 bonded labour, mostly dalits, adivasis, agricultural workers, brick kiln workers from various districts of Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka, activists and concerned groups took out a massive rally to the DC’s Office in Jalandhar, highlighting their plight and demanding justice.