File photo of Kailash Satyarthi. (Agence France-Presse)
Home Minister Rajnath Singh today congratulated
Kailash Satyarthi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for 2014 for promoting child rights. (
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"Congratulations to Shri Kailash Satyarthi on winning the Nobel Peace Prize. He launched a movement against child labour & child trafficking," Mr Singh tweeted.
Mr Satyarthi, 60, shares his award with Pakistani teen activist Malala Yousafzai. The Nobel jury said the two have been awarded for their "struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education."
The jury also said it was "an important point for a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for education and against extremism."
Mr Satyarthi belongs to Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh. He was an electrical engineer who turned into an activist for children's rights at the age of 26.
In 1983, he founded the Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save the Childhood Movement) to fight child labour. His efforts have helped rescue thousands of children from bondage, trafficking and exploitative labour.
With the help of NGOs and activists, he has organized hundreds of raids on factories and warehouses where children were being made to work.
He created "Rugmark" which certifies that carpets and rugs sold abroad have been made without the labour of children. The initiative turned out to be highly successful in raising international awareness about children's rights.
After Narendra Modi was elected Prime Minister, Mr Satyarthi tweeted, "A tea-boy dares his detractors by becoming the PM of India. Now it's his turn to ensure that no child is forced to become a child labourer."