Guwahati, May 20: In a major operation, Jorhat Police have rescued 24 victims of human trafficking, all belonging to tea garden communities, from Rupa in West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh. The rescue took place in two batches on May 15 and 17, under the jurisdiction of the Mariani Police Station in Titabar sub-division.
Two accused — Lakshman Dutta (59) of Sonowal Seuji Gaon and Pitka Majhi (31) of Dahingeapar Tea Estate — have been arrested.
The victims were allegedly lured in April with false promises of work in Tezpur, drugged during transit, and then taken across state lines. Once in Arunachal, they were forced into exploitative labour conditions without pay, often working from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., without access to phones and under threat.
“We were given intoxicants that rendered us unconscious during the journey,” said one of the victims.
The case came to light after Gauri Sahu, wife of a missing worker, filed a complaint on April 27. Her report led to the tracking and rescue of the victims.
Jorhat SP Shwetank Mishra confirmed that the workers thought they were going to Tezpur but were taken to Arunachal Pradesh instead. Eight victims were rescued and returned to Assam on May 15, followed by the second group.
Anti-trafficking groups say such networks are prevalent in Assam’s tea garden belts, often targeting vulnerable individuals and women with job offers, only to exploit or sell them into forced labour or sex trafficking.
Police investigations are ongoing to identify further victims and dismantle the wider trafficking network.
