Tests have confirmed that the 17-year-old girl, dragged into a taxi by four men in Howrah and taken to the port area on Tuesday, had been raped.

?We will come to know of the details of the assault only after the medical report reaches us. But it has been confirmed that the girl had been raped,? said deputy commissioner of police (headquarters) Pradip Chatterjee.

The girl, who lives in a Belilious Road slum, was raped in an abandoned house near the port late on Tuesday. The four rapists have not been identified. The information provided by the girl so far has not proved helpful for police.

The teenager told police that she was taking a stroll on Tuesday night when a taxi screeched to a halt nearby. Two men got off the rear seat and pushed her into the vehicle. The men took her to one of the abandoned officers? quarters of Calcutta Port Trust and raped her.

The men left her around midnight. The girl was walking down Diamond Harbour Road when she was spotted by a police patrol.

Officers of South Port police station, where the girl lodged a complaint, visited her home on Thursday. ?Though she provided us with a better description of the culprits today, she is still in trauma and not in a position to answer our queries properly. We will speak to her again within a day or two to find out what the culprits look like,? said an officer.

Police have decided to engage an artist to draw portraits of the culprits. ?We need some time for this. Only the victim?s description will help us get a clear picture of the four men,? the officer added.

Deputy commissioner Chatterjee stated: ?We are in touch with our counterparts in Howrah. Besides, police stations in the port division have been alerted.?

Trinamul Congress MLAs Kallol Khan and Sonali Guha raised the matter in the Assembly on Thursday. They demanded a statement by the chief minister.