Human trafficking has always been a cause of concern in Sundargarh district.
Seven persons of Sundargarh district allegedly were trafficked by an agent to Jammu and Kashmir to work there but were tortured and one of them fled his work place and reached home recently.
He reveled about the torture and harassment he and his companions were subjected to.
The youth after fleeing from his work met the Rourkela SP recently and requested him to rescue his younger brother from Kashmir who had also been trafficked among a few others. He said about five other than his brother are languishing in Kashmir.
According to sources, agent Ganga lohar, a resident of Deogaon, had first lured one Buddha lohar, younger son of Feku lohar, a resident of Kusumtoli under Chandiposh police station, to go with him to Kashmir to work there. later, on January 4 this year, he managed to lure Buddha’s elder brother Ram lohar and another five workers of Sundargarh district.
However, at the work place, they were not provided salary and food properly and harassed regularly. When Ram lohar came to know that they have been duped by agent Ganga, he dialed to his wife and told her about his plight.
The family members of Ram talked to social worker of their area Chandmani Sandil and had sought his help to rescue their both sons from Kashmir. When Chandmani contacted agent Ganga, Ganga had assured that Ram and Buddha would come to their home within one month and had also assured that they would get their due salary.
But finding that there would be no stopping to their misery, Ram lohar fled.
Ram lohar told the Rourkela SP that when he asked his employer to give him his salary for his work, his employer had told him that he had paid Rs 50000 to the agent for one year to engage him there.
“We are investigating into it. We have interrogated the agent who is involved in the trafficking and would take necessary steps at the earliest,” said SP Uma Shankar Das.