A teenage girl arriving at a hospital four months pregnant has led police in Chhattisgarh to a suspected interstate human trafficking and bonded-labour network that allegedly transported thousands of impoverished workers—including children and teenagers travelling with their families—to brick kilns in several states.
Police have arrested five suspected traffickers—three from Chhattisgarh and two from Odisha—after conducting raids at 10 locations across the two states.
During the searches, police seized ₹1.4 crore in cash, labour-migration registers and diaries, mobile phones, bank passbooks, cheque books, ATM cards, mortgage documents and a currency-counting machine.
Investigation began after hospital reports minor’s pregnancy
Mahasamund SP Prabhat Kumar said the investigation began after a maternity home sent a report to police on September 21 regarding the pregnancy of a minor.
During the inquiry, police learned that the 15-year-old girl had travelled with her family to a brick kiln in Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki district for seasonal employment. Investigators allege that she was sexually exploited there by a JCB driver.
Police subsequently contacted the girl and her parents and conducted counselling and questioning.
What initially appeared to be a case involving the sexual exploitation of one minor gradually led investigators to examine a much larger network: who recruited the family, how workers were transported to the kilns, who controlled their earnings and why children accompanying migrant families were also being made to work.
Family allegedly trapped through advance payment
According to police, the family received an advance of ₹40,000 from the main contractor. Investigators allege that the advance was subsequently used to bind the family to work at the brick kiln.
According to the FIR, the family was allegedly not free to leave the kiln, contact outsiders or return home. They were reportedly made to work for around 16 hours a day, from 11am until midnight.
The minor was also allegedly forced to work after taking the place of her brother, who had temporarily returned home when their grandfather fell ill.
Investigators say the incident highlighted how children travelling with migrant families can become directly involved in the labour cycle, potentially exposing them to further exploitation.
Police examine reports of girls returning pregnant
Police are also investigating information suggesting that teenage girls from migrant labour families have allegedly returned home pregnant after seasonal employment at brick kilns.
Officials familiar with the inquiry said the number of girls involved could range from 10 to 50. Investigators are now examining allegations of sexual exploitation and determining how many of the pregnancies involved minors and whether any of those cases were reported under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Records point to large-scale labour migration
As the investigation expanded, police recovered registers and digital records containing details of thousands of adult and minor workers allegedly transported to unregistered brick kilns without the required statutory permissions or documentation.
Investigators said the distances involved may have made it harder for workers to leave their employers and return home.
Many families were allegedly transported 500–600 km or even farther from their villages. Once they reached the kilns, entire households could become part of the labour system.
According to investigators, workers often travelled with their spouses and children, and family members—including minors—were allegedly required to work to meet production targets or compensate for advances paid to the household.
Police said some of the conditions described in the investigation were consistent with bonded labour, including extremely long working hours, wages allegedly being withheld or adjusted against advances, restrictions on movement and dependence on contractors for transportation back home.
Adolescent girls and women among most vulnerable
The alleged exploitation of women and adolescent girls has emerged as one of the most serious aspects of the investigation.
According to the records seized by police, each of the five accused may have facilitated the movement of between 2,000 and 5,000 workers every year to brick kilns in different states. Workers were allegedly employed for periods of up to six months.
SP Prabhat Kumar said police were treating the matter as an organised trafficking operation and were examining call-detail records, bank accounts and financial transactions to establish the network’s full chain of operations.
Investigators are also attempting to identify other people involved in recruitment, transportation, contracting and the management of workers at the destination kilns.
Five accused arrested
An FIR has been registered at Khallari police station under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), with organised-crime provisions added during the investigation.
The five arrested suspects have been produced before a court for judicial remand.
Police are continuing to examine the seized registers, documents and electronic data. Investigators say the material could help establish the scale of the alleged network, identify destination brick kilns and financial links, and determine how many workers may have been subjected to trafficking, bonded labour, child labour or sexual exploitation.
