The Commission-erate police late on Friday night cracked down on dance bars in the city for illegal operation and rescued as many as 96 girls engaged as dancers in the bars.
Eleven bars on Cuttack Road were raided for allegedly operating as dance bars and employing girls without licence.
The girls were from various places outside Odisha such as Nainital, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal, Delhi and Haryana. They were handed over to their relatives following verification of their identity proofs. The girls were reportedly engaged in the bars for various purposes.
No licences were given to the bar owners to run dance bars. As per Section 25 of the Bihar and Orissa Excise Act, 1915, the girls could not be employed at any bar for which the State Government has not issued licence for operation of dance bars.
The licences have been given only for running bars.