Telangana High Court Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh addressing the one-day judicial colloquium on ‘Human Trafficking and Bonded Labour’, organised by the Telangana State Judicial Academy with International Justice Mission.
| Photo Credit: By Arrangement
A five-year-old child trapped in bonded labour, families passing debt from one generation to the next, and survivors at risk of being pushed back into exploitation even after rescue were among the realities highlighted at a judicial colloquium in Secunderabad on Saturday. Judges, police officers and experts stressed that rescue alone cannot end human trafficking and bonded labour; survivors also need sustained support to prevent re-exploitation.
“We need to work in tandem. We have to look at the larger picture and not just individual cases. There is a need for convergence of all the departments involved,” Telangana High Court Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh said.
The one-day judicial colloquium on ‘Human Trafficking and Bonded Labour’, organised by the Telangana State Judicial Academy (TSJA), with International Justice Mission (IJM) as its technical partner, brought together 255 participants from the judiciary, police, government departments, prosecution, district administration and civil society, along with technical experts and survivors.
The discussions repeatedly returned to what happens after a victim is rescued. Without rehabilitation and sustained support, survivors can remain vulnerable to re-exploitation, while prolonged legal proceedings can force them to repeatedly relive their trauma.
TSJA president Moushumi Bhattacharya said bonded labour had no place in a civilised society. “You cannot have men and women working for you for free without wages, let alone minimum wages.”
Telangana Police Academy director Abhilasha Bisht highlighted the intergenerational nature of bonded labour, saying families trapped in debt could pass the burden on to even toddlers.
For Divya Devarajan, CEO of Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty, the discussion brought back memories of one of her first rescue operations as a sub-collector in 2013. Among those rescued was a five-year-old child trapped in bonded labour.
High Court judge B. Vijaysen Reddy and Women Safety Wing in-charge DIG Viswajit Kampati shared their experiences of dealing with bonded labour. HC judge T. Madhavi Devi spoke about the challenges in combating labour trafficking and possible remedial measures. Loretta Babu of IJM also addressed the gathering.
Published – September 27, 2026 06:50 pm IST
