500% Rise In Nepal Girls Trafficked To India In Last Five Years

There has been 500% increase in girls trafficked from Nepal to India since 2013. This came to light in a recent study by border guarding force, Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

The study--Human Trafficking on Indo-Nepal border—states that girls from Nepal are brought to Indian city brothels for about Rs 50,000. It notes that girls of villages and the Terai region of Nepal are most prone to flesh trade. Traffickers bring them to brothel owners in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and other cities for prostitution.

The research reveals that while in 2013, SSB rescued 108 girls/children from the Indo-Nepal border, the figure rose to 607 in 2017

SSB called Nepal as a "source" country for trafficking girls and children in India. It pointed out that these girls then become victims of prostitution, domestic work or exploitative labour. In some cases, they even have to lose their organs illegally for trade.

It referred to Nepal's women and social welfare ministry which says that 26 of Nepal's 75 districts are trafficking prone. The report found out that traffickers mostly target girls from the hills and scheduled caste children but up,per class girls also have a chance of trafficking.

The research says that men traffickers aka ‘Dalals’ and women traffickers (often sex-workers) aka ‘Didis’ bring these children in the age group of 9 to 16 to border towns. From there, they send the children off to India in buses. On the Indian side of the border, traffickers pay professional agents up to Rs. 6,000 for every child to be sold to brothels. SSB also revealed that many times, apart from didis, family members of the girls also act as traffickers and they train the girls to hide their real age if in conflict with police.

The brokers then travel by bus or by train to Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi or even to smaller cities and sell these girls to a brothel owner or madam (referring to female agents in India) for up to Rs 50,000. Most brokers travel by local buses to Delhi, and then Mumbai by train

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It observes that traffickers first take Nepalese girls from villages to Kathmandu where there either put them in guest houses or carpet factories or from there to border town where they sell them to “brokers”.

"The brokers then travel by bus or by train to Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi or even to smaller cities and sell these girls to a brothel owner or madam (referring to female agents in India) for up to Rs 50,000. Most brokers travel by local buses to Delhi, and then Mumbai by train," says the SSB research, exclusively accessed by TOI.

The brothel owners, who have political connections, never come under the police radar.

Trafficking in Nepal mostly happens in the months of June and late August or early September when didis return to their hometown to lure girls to India.

"At this time of the year (June to August), every mountain village of Nepal suffers from more than the usual level of poverty, while they wait for new harvests," says SSB.

SSB cited a recent Indian government survey which says that 60% sex workers are in the profession because of poverty or economic compulsion.

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