Man held for human trafficking in Assam, 15 rescued

Guwahati: With floods affecting almost all the districts of Assam, human traffickers are on the prowl to lure women and girls out of the state, police said.

One such attempt came to light on Sunday after police in Goreswar arrested a man who was allegedly planning to smuggle at least nine women and six girls out of Assam.

Police have rescued the 15 victims and would send them to their respective homes soon.

"We raided a house in Goreswar and found nine women and six girls. On being asked, they have said that one Tilak Rajbongshi has gathered all of them by giving them hope that they would be given employment in Chennai. However, Rajbongshi failed to provide any work related documents of any company," said a police official.

He was then arrested for involvement in human trafficking, the officer said.

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Floods and erosion render thousands of people homeless every year in Assam.

In the calamity, people lose their houses as well as livelihood, which is agriculture in most cases.

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Human traffickers normally take advantage of the situation and lure these distressed people - mostly women - out of the state.

Floods have severely affected the Baksa district and washed away hundreds of houses besides affecting farmland.

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Assam Police have decided to set up separate cells in the police stations across the state to deal with human trafficking cases.

"Seven such cells have been set up in seven police stations in various districts. We are planning to set up such cells in all the police stations in the vulnerable districts," a senior official of the Criminal Investigation Department said.

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