Agartala: As many as 45 youths, including seven minors, who were allegedly subjected to physical and mental exploitation in Arunachal Pradesh, were rescued and brought back safely to Tripura on Monday following coordinated efforts by the state police and labour department officials, authorities said.
The rescue operation began after tea garden workers from the Kalishasan and Rangrung tea estates in Unakoti district lodged a written complaint at Kailashahar police station on December 23. The complainants alleged that agents took 24 youths out of the state on December 9 on the pretext of providing jobs and higher wages but later forced them to work under inhuman conditions in Arunachal Pradesh.
According to the complaint, employers made the youths work long hours without pay, denied them adequate food, and allegedly subjected them to physical assault.
After receiving the complaint, Chandipur MLA and Labour Minister Tinku Roy took up the matter with the Arunachal Pradesh government and sought the state labour minister’s assistance to ensure the youths’ safe return, officials said.
On December 24, Arunachal Pradesh Police traced and rescued the victims, the Arunachal Pradesh labour minister later informed Roy.
Subsequently, officials from the Unakoti district labour department, including inspectors Tanmay Barua and Vijay Sharma, along with two police personnel from Kailashahar police station, travelled to Arunachal Pradesh to bring the youths back to Tripura.
They arrived in Kailashahar on Monday evening, and police took them to the local police station, where Roy interacted with them to gather details about their recruitment and transportation.
The minister said the initial complaint mentioned 24 youths from two tea gardens, but authorities identified and rescued an additional 21 youths during the operation.
Of them, 11 belong to the Piarichhara and Sonaichhara tea gardens under Kadamtala block in North Tripura district, while the remaining 10 are from the Manu Valley and Halaichhara tea gardens in Kailashahar.
Roy said seven of the rescued youths were aged 16 and 17.
He directed police to arrest Om Prakash Upadhyay, who allegedly facilitated their recruitment and movement to Arunachal Pradesh.
After completing legal formalities, officials handed over the youths to their families.