An Insider View of West Bengal’s Fight Against Human Trafficking

By Puja Bhattacharjee

Kolkata, West Bengal: West Bengal, with its 38 Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs), has faced the brunt of trafficking in the country. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 58,871 individuals were reported missing in the state in 2022, of whom 53,655 were women. That year, 12,455 children were also reported missing, and there were 67 registered incidents of human trafficking involving 78 victims. The conviction rate in such cases stood at 55%. In the Sundarbans, back-to-back cyclones like Amphan and Yaas, rising sea levels, and deepening poverty have driven large-scale migration, leaving women, children, and other vulnerable groups particularly at risk.

The officer interviewed has been part of this fight for nearly a decade. Her entry into anti-trafficking work began almost incidentally: “As a woman police officer, I was often given cases of missing or kidnapped women. I worked on tracing and rescuing them, investigating cases, and filing chargesheets.” In 2016, she was posted to the Protection of Women & Children (POWC) Cell of the Criminal Investigation Department, specifically in the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, after earlier postings in general and women’s police stations. 

That was the turning point in her career, leading her into a series of training programmes organised by the state government for officers selected for AHTUs. These programmes, she explains, brought together police officers, NGOs, lawyers, and public prosecutors. The idea was to train police in trafficking laws, highlight how traffickers exploit loopholes, and build skills in conducting rescues, gathering evidence, and coordinating with agencies for survivor rehabilitation.

According to her, trafficking cases often start as kidnapping cases, and it is crucial to remain vigilant during the first few months when signs of trafficking begin to emerge. The trainings also highlighted the importance of survivor counselling and reintegration, as well as precautionary measures to prevent re-trafficking.

See Also: Why Has the US Government Put Hong Kong on Its Human Trafficking Watchlist?

Rescue map

The process of identifying and rescuing victims has changed over time, she said. 

Earlier, without mobile phones and digital trails, officers relied entirely on visiting villages, questioning families and acquaintances, and cultivating sources among pimps and local contacts. “We would gather photos of missing girls and ask our sources to identify them. It was painstaking and slow,” she says. A major challenge was that trafficked girls were often altered so much in appearance and behaviour that even families struggled to recognise them.

The officer told 101Reporters about one particularly difficult case where a girl had been missing for months before a complaint was lodged. By then, her name and appearance had been completely altered. “A girl can vanish from her village and reappear far away, almost untraceable but there are always small clues if you know how to look,” the officer said. In such cases, persuasion rather than outright force is most often the trafficker’s tool.

With the rise of mobile phones and social media, investigative methods have shifted. Officers now examine call detail records, deleted messages, and online activity, and use digital forensics to establish how girls are lured. They also deploy decoy customers and plainclothes officers for surveillance. 

“Rescuing girls from traffickers is extremely difficult. These dens are run by people who will go to any lengths to conceal the victims. Girls can be hidden inside water tanks or other unlikely places, and if word gets out that the police are on their way, the victim is often moved,” she said. 

“Careful planning is what ensures the success of the operation. If the planning is solid, the rescue will be successful,” she added. 

The official said that the Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act empowers the police to request closure of buildings housing brothels. “Our aim is not only to rescue one girl but to dismantle the operation. For that, groundwork and proper evidence collection are essential. Preventing bail is often the biggest hurdle.”

Post-rescue, ensuring the safety of survivors is another battle. Girls often cannot distinguish between threats and genuine help because of the psychological manipulation they endure in brothels. Social workers play a critical role in establishing trust.

See Also: Sex Trafficking Survivor Tells Her Harrowing Story

Social skills

“The social workers who accompany us during the rescue help us in engaging with the rescued girls. These girls are often so deeply traumatised that they struggle to tell who is lying and who is telling the truth. They lose the ability to distinguish between the police, the pimp, a well-wisher or a threat. Trust becomes impossible,” she explained.

The official added that social workers are skilled in breaking the ice and slowly helping the girls open up and share their story. 
Minors are placed under the care of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and housed in affiliated homes, while adult survivors come under the supervision of District Social Welfare Officers. Direct release to families is rarely appropriate, given the risks of stigma, self-harm, or re-trafficking.

Prosecution and compensation add further layers of difficulty. While the police submit petitions for compensation on behalf of survivors, the process is handled by the District and State Legal Services Authorities. Courts may also direct compensation. In trial, delays and trauma affect witness testimonies—sometimes survivors no longer wish to recount their experiences by the time cases come up. Independent witnesses are important but can also weaken over time. Establishing financial transactions in sex trafficking cases remains particularly hard, since most dealings are unrecorded.

“By the time the survivor is called to testify, she may have forgotten key details or may have moved on with her life and may not want to revisit the trauma. That is why we emphasise having independent witnesses. But even they may forget important details or lose the empathy they had during the rescue,” she added.

For rescue operations in other states, the team ensures that independent witnesses—often NGO workers—accompany them so their testimony will stand up in court. 

“Most people are unwilling to set foot in the localities where raids are conducted, and local residents rarely agree to testify. That is why independent witnesses are important,” she said.

Rehabilitation, the officer says, is the most challenging aspect. Survivors face stigma, loss of community acceptance, and must cope with trauma. Efforts to reintegrate them involve block and district administrations, welfare officers, and NGOs. Some survivors who have been successfully rehabilitated now participate in awareness campaigns in schools, speaking about their own experiences. “Neither the police nor the civil administration can manage alone. Both must work together for rehabilitation,” she added. 

She has also observed important shifts in trafficking patterns. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, traffickers rely much more on social media, building online friendships with girls that progress to manipulation and deception. Another recent trend involves the recruitment of both girls and boys into dance troupes performing at weddings, where they are confined, exploited, and made to work under harsh conditions. Delayed reporting by families and the withholding of crucial information due to social stigma remain persistent challenges that undermine police efforts in the crucial early days.

Reflecting on her experience, the officer advises young recruits in this field to cultivate empathy. “If you see it as just another case, you will miss its larger social impact. This work is not just about rescue but also about prevention. By building networks with NGOs, schools, and communities, officers can intervene early.” In schools, she said, simply sharing an officer’s contact number can give vulnerable girls a lifeline.

This story was produced for and originally published as part of the Crime and Punishment project in collaboration with Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy.

This article was originally published in 101 Reporters under Creative Common license. Read the original article.

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