New Delhi (AsiaNews/BBC) – The scourge of child labour appears to be unstoppable. Although organizations seek to wrest children away from work – which many start as young as five years – many prefer to slave away instead because of their families' pressing poverty.

On 21 November, the Indian authorities rescued around 500 children from exploitation in a police crackdown on several workplaces in Delhi.

Child labour  for under-14s is illegal in India but despite the ban, millions of children are exploited as workers in homes or in factories, The Indian government says there are around 17 million child workers but according to statistics cited by NGOs, the overall figure would be closer to somewhere between 45 – 100 million.

Most of the 500 rescued children worked in textile industries where they undertook intricate work in unhealthy conditions. Many parents say their children are forced to work from the age of five or six years to escape poverty.

Most of these children worked in unhealthy conditions for very long hours with very bad pay. "Normally they work in small rooms, poorly ventilated and badly lit. And most work for more than 10 hours a day," says M. Rajan, the managing trustee of Pratham, the NGO which looks after the children.

Pratham has a nine-room building in south Delhi's commercial district of Bhikaji Cama place. This is used as a temporary shelter for 60 boys. "The children are kept here for around a week, waiting to be sent back home," said Rajan.

But the children's future appears uncertain. In the rooms of Bhikaji Cama, most children seem unhappy and confused. Although they have been rescued from exploitation, dozens raise their hands in assent when Pratham volunteers ask how many want to return to work. Many justify this by saying they left clothes and other personal belongings behind at the factory. The Pratham volunteers say many children try to escape from the temporary shelter.

The volunteers say it is difficult for child workers to recover because of the poverty of their families. Parents who are unable to provide for their children's needs have no choice but to send them out to work.

Sixteen-year-old Mohammad Ramzani, came to Delhi two months ago, he was working in a handicrafts firm. He worked eight hours every day and at the end of the month, he sent 300 rupees (nearly $6.5) to his mother in Katihar (in Bihar).

A sobbing Mohammed said: "I do not really like working, but I have no choice. I am the only bread winner in my family. My mother and younger brother are dependent on my earnings."

Mohammed Tabrez Alam also comes from Bihar. He had been working in the Indian capital for a year and half. "We used to start work at nine in the morning. Most days we worked till 12 or 1 in the night," he said. His weekly pocket money was of 50 rupees (just over $1) a week, and at the end of the month, the rest of his pay was sent to his family.

Tabrez Alam never went to school and he cannot read or write. He has not plans for his future. He said: "I will take up any work I can find. There is not much to do back home so I will have to go somewhere else to find work."