CHILDREN who were found to be illegally working in an Indian distillery were transported to the factor in school buses, investigations have revealed.

Last week, India’s child rights agency, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), found that 58 were working at the factory owned by Som Group.

Children were found with burns on their hands due to contact with chemicals.

The NCPCR revealed today that the children were “enrolled in a school and would come in school buses.

“So people thought they were going to the school, but they worked in the liquor factory,” NCPCR chief Priyank Kanoongo told Reuters.

Som said in a statement last week that the plant was run by its “associate private limited company” which used labour supplied by contractors, who may not have carried proper age verification checks.

It said the company’s services have been terminated.

Mr Kanoongo said he would ask the local authorities why no arrests had been made and the distillery had not been sealed.

“We will soon send a notice to the local authorities,” he said.

Som’s products are available in over 20 markets, including Britain and the US.