36 Bonded Nepalese Labourers Rescued from Kashmir

Recent killings of migrant workers in Kashmir have triggered a flight of labourers from the Union territory, leading to a massive shortfall in the available labour force, including in the construction industry. This has led to illegal human-trafficking to J&K to fill the labour shortage. Labourers from Nepal are being brought to Kashmir now by unscrupulous agents.

On Wednesday, 36-odd Nepalese labourers were rescued from captivity from a village near Srinagar. They had been smuggled from Saptari and Mahottari districts of Nepal. Among them six were minors while 30 were adults. The raid and rescue operation took place at 3AM on Wednesday and the labourers were lodged at a safe location with the help of the local police and administration.

These 36 labourers had been in captivity for the last three months. They were intimidated and beaten and made to work every day. They were found with swollen hands and legs and in poor mental health.

Bihar has, for long, been a source of human labour to J&K both in the construction industry and in other ancillary units. The handlers of these labourers had established an efficient human supply chain and found ingenious ways of meeting the labour shortfall.

According to the rescue team, two of the Bihari agents were sent to Saptari and Mahottari districts of Nepal eight months ago where they befriended locals and promised them well-paying jobs in India. Each of these labourers’ families was paid Rs 7,000 in Nepalese currency.

Once these labourers landed in Srinagar, their phone and IDs were taken away by the agents and they were held captive in the basement of a house at a village near Srinagar. Every day, they were put in a mini-truck and transported to the construction sites where they were made to work.

It so happened that two of the boys escaped from the construction site and made their way first to Jammu and then to Delhi, Bihar, and finally to their hometown in Nepal. They narrated their story and disclosed the predicament of the captive labourers to the villagers who in turn got in touch with Saroj Raj, a social worker in Nepal.

Saroj contacted Naveen Joshi who runs an NGO named Kin India, an anti-human trafficking organisation rescuing underage children from sexual exploitation and menial work.

Joshi and his team sprung into action and reached Srinagar. With the help of the local Superintendent of Police and District Magistrate, the premises where these labourers were held captive were raided and they were rescued.

“We have lodged an FIR against the labour contractor agent and have been in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs for their safe repatriation to Nepal,” says Joshi.

About The Author

Vijay K Soni

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