Agartala, Dec 25: Acting on a request from the Tripura Police, the Arunachal Pradesh Police have launched a search and rescue operation to trace around 30 child labourers, along with a few adult workers, who were allegedly taken forcibly from Tripura to Arunachal Pradesh for work, a senior police official said on Wednesday.
Officer-in-Charge of Kailashahar Police Station in Unakoti district, Tapas Malakar, said the operation was initiated after family members of the missing children and youths lodged a missing persons complaint. Following the registration of an FIR, the Tripura Police sought assistance from their Arunachal Pradesh counterparts to locate and rescue the workers.
“So far, Arunachal Pradesh Police have managed to trace four of the 30 labourers, while intensive efforts are continuing to rescue the remaining child and adult workers,” Malakar told the media. He added that the matter is being treated with utmost seriousness due to the involvement of minors.
According to police sources, the families alleged that the children were lured away with promises of wages and better facilities but were later subjected to ill-treatment and forced to live in inhuman conditions, leading to severe mental distress. “The families are in deep anguish and are desperately seeking the safe and early return of their children,” Malakar said.
The parents of the missing children are reportedly workers at two tea gardens in Unakoti district, including Rangrung Tea Garden and another estate in the Kailashahar area.
Meanwhile, Tripura Labour, Social Welfare and Social Education Minister Tinku Roy has written to Arunachal Pradesh Commerce and Industries, Labour and Employment Minister Nyato Dukam, seeking his personal intervention in the matter. In his letter, Roy stated that around 30 child labourers and a few adults were taken from the tea garden areas after being enticed with assurances of wages and benefits, but were later denied their lawful entitlements and allegedly exploited.
Emphasising the humanitarian concerns, the Minister urged the Arunachal Pradesh government to extend all necessary assistance for the immediate rescue and safe repatriation of the children. Police said investigations are ongoing and more details are expected as the rescue operation progresses.
