How is Arunachal Police Responding to the Trafficking of 30 Child Labourers from Tripura?
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Agartala/Itanagar, Dec 24 (NationPress) Responding to a plea from the Tripura Police, the Arunachal Pradesh Police have commenced a search mission to locate and rescue 30 child labourers and several adult workers who were reportedly forcibly taken to Arunachal Pradesh for employment, as per officials' statements made on Wednesday.
Tapas Malakar, Officer-in-Charge of the Kailashahar Police Station in Tripura's Unakoti district, indicated that following the registration of a missing persons report, the Tripura Police reached out to their Arunachal counterparts for support.
“As of now, four out of the 30 labourers have been found, and intensive efforts are ongoing to rescue the remaining child and adult workers,” Malakar informed the media.
Families of the children and young adults filed a First Information Report (FIR) at the Kailashahar Police station on Tuesday, alleging that their loved ones were suffering ill-treatment and were forced to endure inhumane conditions, resulting in significant mental distress.
“The families are in profound distress and are fervently requesting the safe and swift return of their loved ones,” Malakar emphasized, highlighting the humanitarian seriousness of the circumstance.
The parents of the missing children work at tea plantations in the Unakoti district. In the meantime, Tripura's Minister for Labour, Social Welfare, and Social Education, Tinku Roy, has addressed a letter to Arunachal Pradesh's Minister for Commerce and Industries, Labour and Employment, Nyato Dukam, urging his intervention to aid in the rescue of the children.
In his correspondence, Roy expressed that approximately 30 child labourers, alongside a few adult workers, were taken from the Rangrung Tea Garden and another tea estate in Kailashahar under Unakoti district to Arunachal Pradesh under the pretense of wages and benefits.
However, it has been reported that they were denied their legal rights by the traffickers.
The Minister further remarked that family members have alleged that the children were subjected to abuse and forced to live in dehumanizing conditions, leading to severe psychological distress and anxiety.
“Given the seriousness of this issue and the humanitarian concerns involved, I sincerely request your intervention to provide all necessary support for the immediate rescue and safe return of the child labourers to their homes in Tripura as soon as possible,” Roy stated in his letter.