The Gap says it has taken steps to enforce its prohibition of the use of child labor after a British newspaper found a subcontractor in New Delhi using children as young as 10.

In an article on Sunday, the Observer says it discovered children "in a filthy sweatshop working on piles of beaded children's blouses." The children described long hours of working without pay, as well as threats and beatings, according to the report.

The Gap said in a statement that "as soon as we were alerted to this situation, we stopped the work order and prevented the product from being sold in stores."

"While violations of our strict prohibition on child labor in factories that produce product for the company are extremely rare, we have called an urgent meeting with our suppliers in the region to reinforce our policies."

The company said that it stopped doing business with 23 factories last year because of violations of its code of conduct.

The Observer notes that child labor is common in India, citing one estimate that more than 20 percent of India's economy is dependent on children.