Human trafficking and rehabilitation of trafficked victims in India

Human trafficking is an egregious human rights violation that occurs throughout the world. Due to its complex cross-border nature, human trafficking requires a coordinated, multi-disciplinary national and international response. Human trafficking is the second largest organized crime after drugs and the arms trade across the globe. The reasons for the increase in this global phenomenon are multiple and complex, affecting rich and poor countries alike. India is no exception to this. According to the definition of the United Nations -“trafficking is any activity leading to recruitment, transportation, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of threat or use of force or a position of vulnerability”. Human trafficking is an organized crime and considered as the second largest crime industry in the world after the illegal drug trade. India is a source, destination and transit country for labour and sex trafficking. In India, 90 percent of trafficking occurs domestically (intrastate or interstate), and 10 percent occurs across national borders. The country serves as a destination for persons trafficked from neighboring countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh, and as a transit country for individuals being trafficked to the Middle East and other parts of the world. In addition, India is a source country for individuals trafficked to Europe, the Middle East and North America. Against this backdrop, present paper highlights the magnitude of human trafficking and issue of rehabilitation as well as reintegration of trafficked victims in India. The paper is based on secondary data collected mainly from National Crime Records Bureau, and Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India.