As many as 14 persons, including nine minor girls, were rescued by the Government Railway Police (GRP) on Tuesday evening from the Tata-Allepy Express train at Rourkela station, while they were being trafficked to Tamil Nadu.
The police also nabbed the broker, who was accompanying them with a promise to engage them in a cotton mill there.
The broker was arrested and forwarded to court on Wednesday.
Sources said, GRP Rourkela police had received an intelligence input from the Railway Protection Force (RPF) that a group of labourers was being trafficked in the Tata-Allepy express train.
The team had boarded the train from Chakradharpur station. Accordingly, a team of GRP Rourkela had conducted a raid in the train, after its arrival at the Rourkela station. The team had located them in B 2 and B 3 Air conditioned coaches of the train.
The police rescued about 10 women workers, including nine minor girls, of the total 14. The broker was identified as K Silveraj (53).
“The rescued nine minor girls were handed over to Childline where as the remaining persons have been released with an advice to go back to their homes,” said OIC GRP Rourkela S lakra, adding all the rescued persons were native of West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand.
A process was on to inform the labour Department and
the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) of Jharkhand Government to hand over the rescued children to their family members, CWC Sundargarh chairperson Basant Mallick said.