Human trafficking on the rise in Junglemahal

3 April 2012

biswabrata goswami
MIDNAPORE, 3 APRIL: The number of people missing from Maoist-hit Junglemahal in West Midnapore has increased manifold in the past three years, triggering fears that more persons are being trafficked from the region than before.
Social activists have blamed poverty, lack of job opportunities and political instability for the rise in the number of “missing” persons. According to figures available with the district administration, the number of “missing” people in eight blocks of Jhargram sub-division in West Midnapore has gone up to 184 between 2009 and 2011 while it was 73 between 2006 and 2008. The most alarming figure the report has thrown up is not the increase in “missing” people in the whole district but the rise in the number in the eight blocks of Maoist-hit tribal area in Jhargram.
“The situation is alarming in Sankrail, Binpur-II, Gopiballavpur-I and Nayagram blocks of Jhargram and with the political instability for the past four years, acute poverty, lack of job opportunities and unprecedented violence, these figures are bound to rise. It is time a proactive intervention programme is devised for the region,” said Ms Swathi Dutta, a social activist associated with the Child Welfare Committee (CWC).
Asked if the increase in the number of “missing” cases was actually a sign that people were becoming more aware and were filing complaints in various police stations on the slightest suspicion, the activist replied in the negative. “The figures are only the tip of the iceberg and the number of complaints has increased because the number of trafficked people in every place has increased,” said Ms Dutta. According to reports submitted by various agencies before the district administration, most of these people are trafficked by middlemen locally known as agent or dalal, some are by their near relatives or even family members. The situation is alarming as there is no trace of where about 10 per cent of these people are.
“These people, mostly girls between 15 to 18 years and their parents, become easy prey of agents who lure them with attractive packages and lifestyle. These trafficked girls are subjected to worst kind of economic and physical exploitation at various metros in our country. It is strange that the administration has no proper information or data bank for these trafficked girls,” said an officer of the district social welfare department.
“During the tough periods when political clashes often occurred in tribal villages in the past three years, many earning members of the tribal families were forced to join the armed camps.
Police are also responsible for increased trafficking as this issue is not prioritised enough. The geographic condition of Jhargram is such that it forms an easy transit point for trafficking, said a social welfare officer.