Child Labour Laws - Is it a fallacy?

Something on Wednesday (27/12) night moved me immensely and I thought I should pen my thoughts and share with you.
Wednesday I had been to an invitation dinner party at US Club in Colaba and was returning by the 12:08 pm Virar slow. The co travellers were all in the dozing mode after a long day of work. At Dadar, a swarm of people got in, mostly daily wage workers (as I could gauge by their apperance and tools they were carrying). In the midst of this, a young frail boy of around 10 years also got into the train carrying 2 big shoe polish brushes and some shoe laces. He was the usual shoe shine boy. But what struck me about him was he was not dressed in the usual tatters that one can usually see on a shoeshine boy but a little near a average clothing mark. He started off by asking each of the passengers for a polish but none was in the mood. A gentleman opposite me appeared a little good natured and started searching for change. Unfortunately, he had none. The guy made a genuine effort. It was also apparent that the little shoeshine boy was feelling utterly miserable to pester the gentleman. And in feeble tone he started sobbing and saying that he hasn't have anything to eat. I was wearing a suede shoe and was disappoiinted in not being able to give him a opportunity to earn.
What touched me greatly was, here I was returning from a party from one of the plushest of Mumbai clubs, and here was a 10 year old crying for food. I took out a five rupee coin and profferred towards him to cater for a vada pav atleast. He was hesitant in accepting that. A prodded a little more and he hesitated a little more. But perhaps his extreme hunger and helplessness took the better of his dignity and he took it. What would have prompted him to such dejection? This triggered me to think the title of this blog.
In a recent move about a month back, the Govt of India banned child labour across the country. A great move if you consider the immense disadvantages of child abuse and child trafficking. But in our country, where a major chunk of our population is below the proverty line, a very large section of sundry jobs are catered to by underage workers. All of us at one point of time would have been served tea/snacks by the quintessential "chhotu" at one of the plethora of eating joints across the country. I have experienced this right from on the solitary path to Hemkund Sahib (at 16000 ft in the Himalayas) to Kanyakumari. These boys are not abused. They earn a livelihood. They support a family. I have spoken to lot of them and amazingly a huge number of them have that fire in their belly to do something and I am sure they will with their zeal.
However, the fact that now becomes significant is, this huge section of these "young" wage earners have been rendered jobless. How does these young "chhotus" cater for their livelyhood and food? Who looks after them?
It is a very "nice" thing to follow Western ethics and human rights, but it is an absolute failure if you do not have the infrastructure to support the people affected by the "rights". I feel we are actually breeding a huge sea of unemployed, uncared for and bitter youth for our tomorrow in these young boys. Did any of our Civil Servants - the babus, the mantris, think about what happens to these kids? Does anyone care? Isn't it a fallacy to usurp a livelihood and drive someone to chilling penury in an effort to have a "Labour Law"?
Send me your views if you feel I am getting it all mixed up!!!