Forced to work at a construction site in Ghaziabad for four months with no money to return home, two families - including three children - were finally rescued on Wednesday.
The migrant workers, who belong to the Scheduled Castes, were brought to a construction site in Loni, Ghaziabad, in June. They were allegedly ‘trafficked’ from Damoh district of Madhya Pradesh with promises of good salaries.
Denied wages, tortured
“The construction site belongs to Rajesh Kashyap. We were promised a daily payment of Rs. 500 for the mason and Rs. 300 for the labourer. Instead, we were given Rs. 500 for eight days’ work. Our movement was restricted after we demanded that we be sent home. Verbal and physical abuse was rampant. Despite insisting that we be paid, there was no sign of the owner giving us the promised wages,” said Jagdish, one of the rescued labourers.
The two families were rescued with help from the National Campaign Committee for Eradication of Bonded Labour (NCCEBL) which has been working for the identification, rescue and release of bonded labourers across the country.
“Initially, the owner refused to admit that these people worked for him. However, he agreed later. We were also able to get them a part of their salary,’’ said advocate Shalini, who was part of the rescue team.
“The two men and their wives were made to work for long periods without the option of leaving. Made to work from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m, they had to report to the security guard in case they wanted to go out for some work,” said Nirmal Gorana, NCCEBL convener.
He added that the men told the NCCEBL that they were denied wages a month after they started working, and that they were given just two meals a day.
Complaint registered
“The contractor threatened them against moving to their home town after they expressed reluctance to work for the company. They were verbally abused on the basis of their caste and beaten up if they objected. They were not given wages for four months, which now amounts to around Rs. 2 lakh,” added Mr. Gorana.
He also noted that the legal aid for this rescue was offered by the Human Rights Law Network. A complaint has been filed against the owner and contractor at the Kotwali Police Station in Loni.
In a release issued a few days ago, the NCCEBL had said that around 21 Dalit bonded labourers were rescued from Noida, but were still to be rehabilitated by the Madhya Pradesh government. “Just like the two rescued families they are also inter-State migrant workers from Madhya Pradesh. Although these bonded labourers have been rescued, the problem is rehabilitation. It is the duty of the authorities under Bonded Labour (Abolition) System Act, 1976, to identify, rescue and rehabilitate the bonded labourers,” added Mr. Gorana.
