Offences have been registered against four persons in Maharashtra's Thane and Palghar districts for allegedly employing children and practising bonded labour, police said on Tuesday. The cases were registered at Padgha police station in Thane and Jawhar police station in Palghar on Monday and no arrests have been made so far, an official said. ??

According to the police, the case registered in Jawhar was against Deoram Kandadkar and Pundalik Kandadkar, who had allegedly taken two sisters, aged six and eight, to Akole in Ahmednagar and employed them to graze sheep and goats.The parents of the girls in Jawhar were paid a meagre sum for the work done by the children since March 2021 till this month, the official said.?

Similarly, two FIRs were registered against Bhiva Goikar and Sambaji Khatal of Raigad and Ahmednagar, who had allegedly employed two boys, aged 17 and 12, from Padgha over the last couple of years, he said.

Based on complaints lodged by the parents of the victims, the cases were registered under the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act and Juvenile Justice Act, the official added.

(With PTI inputs)