Another 52 migrant workers including 17 minors rescued from Odisha’s Balangir

The workers, including 18 male, 17 female and 17 minor girls, were from Sinapali block in Nuapada district and Belpada block in Balangir. 

Balangir: In yet another incident of bonded labour and human trafficking, police today rescued 52 migrant workers including 17 minor girls from Kantabanji in Balangir district of Odisha, while they were reportedly being transported to Hyderabad.

The workers, including 18 male, 17 female and 17 minor girls, were from Sinapali block in Nuapada district and Belpada block in Balangir.

As per reports, the migrants had assembled at Kantabanji railway station on the instructions of the broker and the labour contractor on Wednesday night. The latter were reportedly taking them to Hyderabad without any necessary documents, to work as bonded labour. However, Kantabanj police reached the spot on getting a tip-off and started rescuing all the labourers. The broker too was arrested but the labour contractor managed to flee.

“We were being taken to Hyderabad to work in a brick kiln. This is an annual affair for us. We have no option as we don’t have land for farming or any other means to earn a livelihood. So this is the only way of sustaining our families,” said one of the female labourers from Tukla village in Nuapada. She further shared that five members of her family including two adults and three children were being taken to Hyderabad. They were given Rs 80,000 (Rs 40,000 to each adult) in advance, she added.

Official sources informed that of the 52 workers, 36 were from Sinapali block in Nuapada.  “All the labourers were being taken illegally without any documents or license. The two accused middlemen were identified as Sundar Kumar and Ramesh Rana, both from Sihini village in Belpada block of Balangir. While Sundar was nabbed, Ramesh is on the run. Two separate cases will be filed against them. The rescued labourers will be handed over to the Labour department and efforts will be made to accommodate them under various welfare schemes,” said the district labour officer. He added that license is being given to labourers and the government is stressing that all their movement should be legal failing which there will be consequences.

 

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