Baripda, Dec. 27: The Mayurbhanj district collector has ordered for immediate stopping of salaries of the government employees, who are yet to submit undertakings stating that they have not engaged children in their office or house to do chores.

Some 70 officers and 1,000 government employees have not submitted their undertakings.

District collector Rajesh Prabhakar Patil, who had, in August, asked the officials to submit such undertakings, today issued a circular directing the treasury officers not to release the salaries of officials whose undertakings were still due.

"Despite asking them to submit undertakings that they have not engaged child labourers in their offices and houses, they are yet to respond. That is why we have decided to withhold their salaries," said Patil.

The district has taken several initiatives for children's uplift, mainly with the help of Sarva Sikshya Abhiyan, the district child protection unit and police.

More than 400 child labourers have been rescued from various corners of the district in the past three years and admitted to schools.

In 2014, the district declared that it had no child between the age of six and 14 out of school.