Child Protection Mechanisms — Amendments

Amendment	Year	Description	Impact
86th Constitutional Amendment Act	2002	Inserted Article 21A into the Constitution, making the right to free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14 a Fundamental Right. It also changed Article 45 to mandate early childhood care and education for children below six years.	Transformed education from a Directive Principle to a justiciable Fundamental Right, leading to the enactment of the Right to Education Act, 2009. This significantly impacts child protection by ensuring children are in schools and less vulnerable to exploitation.
Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Amendment Act	2016	Amended the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986. It prohibited the employment of children below 14 years in all occupations and processes, with exceptions for family enterprises and entertainment industry (non-hazardous). It also prohibited adolescents (14-18 years) in hazardous occupations.	Strengthened the legal framework against child labour by making the prohibition almost absolute for children below 14, aligning India's laws with international conventions like ILO Convention 138. Increased penalties for violations.
Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act	2021	Amended the JJ Act 2015 to empower District Magistrates (DMs) and Additional District Magistrates (ADMs) to authorize adoption orders, removing the judicial court's role. It also specified that serious offenses would include offenses with a maximum punishment of more than seven years imprisonment but no minimum sentence or a minimum sentence of less than seven years.	Aimed to expedite adoption processes by shifting authority from courts to DMs, reducing delays. The clarification on 'serious offenses' aimed to streamline the classification of crimes committed by juveniles, impacting how they are handled by JJBs.