DECCAN CHRONICLE
Hyderabad
Monday, February 12, 2007
Rescued girls grab chance to put dark days behind
Seventeen-year-old Anju* wanted to be a teacher, but these hopes were crushed when her brother sold her to a brothel in Hyderabad two years ago. Her luck changed when she was rescued in a recent operation by the Crime Investigation Department and sent to a rescue home in the old city. Now she is learning carpentry and is once again able to dream of a future. Recalling her darkest days, Anju says, “The madam forced me into the trade. Initially I protested and they gave me no food and water for days. I was beaten round the clock and then I had no other option than to accept what she said,” she added.Anju is one of 156 girls from the State who were rescued in a series of operations around the country by the CID in the past few months. Of this number, 26 were minors. Many of girls are from Kurnool, Guntur, Krishna, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, Ranga Reddy and Adilabad districts.
The stories of torture endured by these young girls are chilling. Police say that many of the brothels injected them with hormones to induce artificial growth. Sex traffickers also gave some of them oestrogen injections to speed up puberty. Rescued girls told the police how cockroaches packed in a cloth would be tied to their stomachs if they refused to entertain customers. In some cases the victims were even locked in room with boxes containing snakes. Though some were sold by their closest relatives, others were deceived in the name of jobs, marriage, film roles, modelling and love.
After they are freed from the brothels, the girls are sent to government rescue homes or homes run by NGOs, says Mahesh Bhagawat, SP of the CID. “After that, the rehabilitation and reintegration work is taken up by the Women and Child Welfare Department,” he says. There are about 12 state run homes, but most of these are already crowded so minors are often sent to rescue homes run by NGOs. Here they learn vocational skills and get counselling. Sometimes, the NGOs help them get married too.
It is one of these homes that Santoo*, who was rescued from a brothel in Maharasthra, ended up. She recollects the first day she stepped into the rescue home two weeks ago, “Everything was new to me. My life was totally different.” The 21-year-old from Khammam said that she was working in a telephone booth when she was promised a good job in Hyderabad. But when she boarded the train, she was drugged and woke up to find herself in Maharashtra. Today, she is optimistic. “I have not given up yet. I am learning computers and I want to work with a good company as a computer professional,” she says.
Some of the rescued girls are on a mission to save others. Zaira*, at 20 is outspoken. “I want the world to know what happened to me. I want to dedicate my life to rescuing other girls. I can never forget the trauma I faced. I don’t want this to happen to others,” she says. Zaira like Santoo, was promised a good job. “I eloped with a guy when I was 16 but the marriage fell apart and I worked in a shop. A man promised me a job in Hyderabad, but he took me to Goa instead and sold me to a brothel.”
A lot of girls like Zaira end up working at their rescue homes. Some lucky ones go on to find work or get married. Sadly, there are a few who fall through the cracks and return to the flesh trade. Though the State government has a policy of rehabilitating these women, long-term implementation is a problem. After a certain point the girls must fend for themselves. If like Anju and Santoo, they embrace the chance to learn new skills, there is hope for a brighter future.
*names changed
Monday, February 12, 2007
Rescued girls grab chance to put dark days behind
Seventeen-year-old Anju* wanted to be a teacher, but these hopes were crushed when her brother sold her to a brothel in Hyderabad two years ago. Her luck changed when she was rescued in a recent operation by the Crime Investigation Department and sent to a rescue home in the old city. Now she is learning carpentry and is once again able to dream of a future. Recalling her darkest days, Anju says, “The madam forced me into the trade. Initially I protested and they gave me no food and water for days. I was beaten round the clock and then I had no other option than to accept what she said,” she added.Anju is one of 156 girls from the State who were rescued in a series of operations around the country by the CID in the past few months. Of this number, 26 were minors. Many of girls are from Kurnool, Guntur, Krishna, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, Ranga Reddy and Adilabad districts.
The stories of torture endured by these young girls are chilling. Police say that many of the brothels injected them with hormones to induce artificial growth. Sex traffickers also gave some of them oestrogen injections to speed up puberty. Rescued girls told the police how cockroaches packed in a cloth would be tied to their stomachs if they refused to entertain customers. In some cases the victims were even locked in room with boxes containing snakes. Though some were sold by their closest relatives, others were deceived in the name of jobs, marriage, film roles, modelling and love.
After they are freed from the brothels, the girls are sent to government rescue homes or homes run by NGOs, says Mahesh Bhagawat, SP of the CID. “After that, the rehabilitation and reintegration work is taken up by the Women and Child Welfare Department,” he says. There are about 12 state run homes, but most of these are already crowded so minors are often sent to rescue homes run by NGOs. Here they learn vocational skills and get counselling. Sometimes, the NGOs help them get married too.
It is one of these homes that Santoo*, who was rescued from a brothel in Maharasthra, ended up. She recollects the first day she stepped into the rescue home two weeks ago, “Everything was new to me. My life was totally different.” The 21-year-old from Khammam said that she was working in a telephone booth when she was promised a good job in Hyderabad. But when she boarded the train, she was drugged and woke up to find herself in Maharashtra. Today, she is optimistic. “I have not given up yet. I am learning computers and I want to work with a good company as a computer professional,” she says.
Some of the rescued girls are on a mission to save others. Zaira*, at 20 is outspoken. “I want the world to know what happened to me. I want to dedicate my life to rescuing other girls. I can never forget the trauma I faced. I don’t want this to happen to others,” she says. Zaira like Santoo, was promised a good job. “I eloped with a guy when I was 16 but the marriage fell apart and I worked in a shop. A man promised me a job in Hyderabad, but he took me to Goa instead and sold me to a brothel.”
A lot of girls like Zaira end up working at their rescue homes. Some lucky ones go on to find work or get married. Sadly, there are a few who fall through the cracks and return to the flesh trade. Though the State government has a policy of rehabilitating these women, long-term implementation is a problem. After a certain point the girls must fend for themselves. If like Anju and Santoo, they embrace the chance to learn new skills, there is hope for a brighter future.
*names changed
