E-Paper
Odisha plans new anti-trafficking policy after years of poor conviction rates
Odisha drafting a new policy that aims to overhaul the state’s approach from a reactive policing model to a systemic, survivor-centred strategy and improving prosecutions
In July 2016, a 16-year-old speech-and hearing-impaired girl from Sundargarh district was abducted from her village at night, setting off a frantic search by her family. The grim sequence of events that followed -- until her rescue -- exposed the brutality of Odisha’s human trafficking networks.
Four people forcibly abducted the girl from her home on July 13, sexually assaulted her before trafficking her to Jind in Haryana by train where she was forced into domestic labour including tending cattle.
Weeks later, her father received a phone call from a man in Haryana who said the girl had been sold to him and had stopped eating. The victim’s father and a family member travelled to Haryana, where her captors eventually dropped her near a bus stand, allowing the family to bring her home.
The Sundargarh case has become emblematic of a larger crisis in Odisha, which has recorded the highest number of human trafficking victims in India for four consecutive years from 2021 to 2024 as per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) statistics amid weak conviction rates.
In response to the crisis, Odisha has got down to drafting a sweeping new policy called Nutana Sakala or “New Dawn” in Odia language that aims to overhaul the state’s approach from a reactive policing model to a systemic, survivor-centred strategy and improving prosecutions. HT has reviewed the draft policy.
“This is not only about rescue,” a senior official from the state women and child development department involved in the policy process, said. “It is about ensuring that traffickers are prosecuted, their financial networks are dismantled, and survivors can rebuild their lives,” the official said, asking not to be named.
Damning Data and Structural Vulnerabilities
According to NCRB data, Odisha reported 1,039 trafficking victims in 2024, including 245 minors and 141 minor girls. The state functions both as a major source region and an increasingly important transit corridor, with victims trafficked to Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Haryana and Rajasthan.
Experts say the crisis is rooted in structural vulnerabilities. “Odisha has a large rural population, persistent poverty and significant gender inequality. Tribal communities, which constitute nearly 23% of the state’s population, are disproportionately represented among trafficking victims. Seasonal migration is a critical factor,” said migration sector professional Umi Daniel.
‘More than 20 lakh workers leave Odisha annually in search of employment after droughts, floods or crop failures. Many are recruited by labour contractors who promise jobs in brick kilns, construction sites, factories or urban households, but some end up in forced labour, domestic servitude, commercial sexual exploitation or forced marriages in districts with skewed sex ratios,”
The Proposal
The proposed policy rests on prevention, rescue, rehabilitation, reintegration and advocacy with a three-tier governance structure at the panchayats, districts and state level that would coordinate among 14 government departments.
The policy plans establishment of dedicated fast-track courts in all 30 districts that would be required to complete trials within one year of taking cognisance of a case.
Although Odisha operates 36 Anti-Human Trafficking Units, officials said the state suffers from a severe “conviction deficit”. In 2021, the state recorded no convictions in completed trafficking trials. Of the 298 people arrested for trafficking in 2023, only 182 were charge-sheeted, producing a charge-sheeting rate of about 61%.
Officials attribute the weak outcomes to poor victim-witness protection, delays in processing digital evidence and the absence of specialised prosecutors. To reduce intimidation, survivors would be allowed to testify through video conferencing, and court complexes would have separate entrances for victims and accused persons. Night-court provisions are intended to ensure that victim-witnesses are not kept in police custody after working hours.
The state also plans to appoint specialised prosecutors with a minimum tenure of three years and to invoke the Prevention of Money Laundering Act to trace and confiscate assets linked to trafficking syndicates.
Officials said under the new policy panchayat-level committees would maintain a Mahila Migration Register, documenting women who leave their villages for work, their destinations and employer contact details. The state also plans a Safe Village Programme in 100 high-risk panchayats to train families on trafficking risks and create local vigilance networks.
Shramik Sahayata Kendras
To protect migrant workers, the policy proposes Shramik Sahayata Kendras in vulnerable blocks and community outreach volunteers who would monitor migrant settlements in destination states.
Recognising the growing role of technology in recruitment, the policy also proposes measures against “cyber-enabled human trafficking”. Authorities say traffickers increasingly use social media, dating applications and online job portals to target vulnerable women and girls.
The government plans anonymous reporting applications, safe-internet training in public schools and collaboration with technology companies on age verification and content moderation.
The rescue protocol states that a rescued victim must never be treated as an accused person. Local non-governmental organisations would participate in rescue operations to improve trust and trauma sensitivity.
After rescue, survivors would receive trauma-informed care through integrated victim support centres at district and state levels. These centres would provide medical treatment, psychological counselling and free legal aid under a single roof.
The policy would be implemented with funding from a new non-lapsable corpus fund financed through state budget allocations, fines imposed on convicted traffickers and corporate social responsibility contributions. The fund would cover emergency relief, repatriation and long-term compensation.
Focus on survivor rehabilitation
Survivors would receive priority access to micro-credit schemes such as Subhadra Yojana and Lakhapati Didi, while NGOs receiving state funding would be required to reserve up to 10% of staff positions for trafficking survivors.
The policy also guarantees school admissions and residential education support for survivors’ children, an effort to break what officials describe as the intergenerational cycle of exploitation.
Odisha intends to sign bilateral agreements with major destination states, including Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Haryana, to streamline victim identification, conduct joint rescue operations and ensure safe repatriation.
In August last year, justice finally arrived for the speech and hearing impaired girl of Sundargarh after a district and sessions court there convicted three men and sentenced them to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for abduction, gang rape and trafficking. The sister of one of the accused received a two-year sentence for assisting in the crime.
Her father told the court that his daughter was too traumatised and physically unwell to describe the assault immediately after returning home, which delayed the filing of a detailed complaint.
