Surat: As many as 91 minor children from four states were rescued from three textile units in Surat during a joint operation. The operation, based on the intel provided by Gayatri Seva Sansthan (GSS), was conducted jointly by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), Anti Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU), 22 police officials from Rajasthan, officials from Puna Police Station in Surat, and members of Association for Voluntary Action (AVA) and GSS. Both Association for Voluntary Action and Gayatri Seva Sansthan are partners of Just Rights for Children, the country’s largest child protection network with over 250 partner organisations.

The children, aged between 7 and 14 years, had been trafficked mostly from the tribal areas of Rajasthan, while three children belonged to Uttar Pradesh and one child each was from Bihar and Jharkhand. While traffickers and employers managed to flee from the scene during the raids, legal proceedings are underway and the rescued children are being produced before the Child Welfare Committee in Surat.

The operation was initiated after GSS alerted the NCPCR regarding trafficking rackets operating in these areas following an intensive month-long mapping exercise and investigation. During the raid on the first textile unit, the rescued children themselves led the rescue teams to other locations where more children were confined and employed.

“They led us to a building that was locked from outside. But the children insisted that there were children inside. When we entered, we found children as young as seven working inside the building. They were terrified, confused and looked very tired from over 12 hours of work everyday,” said Dr Shailendra Pandya, Director, Gayatri Seva Sansthan.

He further recalled the condition in which the children were found.

“When we entered, a young child not more than eight was standing shirtless. He hid himself behind others and was asking if someone could lend him a shirt. Such was the plight of the children there,” he said adding that a rescue of this scale was only possible because all the police officials and stakeholders from both the states acted promptly and urgently.

According to preliminary findings, employers adopted deliberate methods to avoid suspicion. Younger children were brought to the units early in the morning and locked inside the building from outside. The building would only be opened after 7 p.m. after the workday ended.

The rescued children were housed in nearby colonies under extremely congested conditions, with nearly 12 to 15 children sharing a single small room.

During interactions with officials, several children stated that their parents were aware that they had been sent for labour work. However, younger children disclosed that they had no idea about child labour and had instead been lured to Surat on the pretext of an excursion.

Among those rescued were two brothers aged 8 and 10 years from tribal regions of Udaipur district in Rajasthan.

Preliminary investigations further revealed that while several children had been working in the units for three to four years, others had only recently arrived from their hometowns.