One of the labourers rescued from Uttaranchal at home in Shantipur. Picture by Palash Debnath

Shantipur, Sept. 17: A group of Nadia labourers who had gone for work to Uttaranchal lured by the promise of Rs 70 a day had to be rescued after they were made to slave for a fraction of what they had hoped to earn.

The plight of the group of 30 from Shantipur — 70 km from Calcutta — came to light after three of them fled a steel plant construction site at Udham Singh Nagar last month.

All of them returned home yesterday after a joint team of policemen and Citu members negotiated their release with the employers.

The labourers, who were on contract, had been recruited by agents who made the false promises about pay and perks. “The police have launched a hunt for one such agent, Indrajit Poddar,” Nadia superintendent Ajay Nand said.

A police officer said the labourers, aged between 15 and 25, were not paid more than Rs 25 a day. “Instead of eight-hour shifts, they were made to work for almost 24 hours without adequate food.”

Hesitant to approach police, the Shantipur families went to the local CPM leadership when they learnt about the men’s plight.

“We sent the families to Citu leaders realising that it would not be possible for police alone to rescue the labourers as they were under contract with their employer,” said Santanu Chakraborty, the CPM zonal committee secretary.

Many of the labourers, like Ranjit Sardar, Tarak Sardar, Adhir Sardar and Raju Sardar, never went to school, and earned around Rs 40 a day working in fields or weaving sari and gamchha earlier.

“We did not think twice when offered the prospect of earning nearly double the amount we earned. We were also promised the labour manager’s post on good performance,” said 22-year-old Ranjit of Khapradanga, a tribal village.

His wife and children worked in the field while he was in Uttaranchal.

“Our payments were irregular and we never got what we were promised. We were sometimes beaten up for not being able to work for long stretches,” said Tarak, who lives in the same village.

When the 30 left in February, they promised their families regular money orders. “But we waited and waited for the money in vain and we starved for days. Then we heard about their condition,” said Arati Sardar, her husband Jogendra by her side.

A police team accompanied by Citu leaders went to Uttaranchal last week.

Shanti Ghosh, who was part of the team, said: “We had initially feared stiff opposition from the employers. But when we explained that what they were doing was totally illegal, they released the labourers from the contract.”