Social welfare minister Parveen Amanullah and the department’s principal secretary, Amitabh Verma, at the workshop on Thursday. Picture by Deepak Kumar

Patna, June 2: The state government is working on a programme to check rampant child and women trafficking.

The Bihar government has initiated a pilot programme to focus on trafficking-prone districts according to the state action plan Astitva, which was approved by the cabinet in 2008.

Social welfare department minister Parveen Amanullah spoke about the new initiative today at a workshop aimed at building a strategy on carrying out Astitva — the state action plan to prevent and combat trafficking — in eight border districts of Bihar.

While addressing the state-level workshop organised by the department of social welfare in collaboration with the non-government organisation (NGO), Save the Children, Amanullah said: “Bihar is among the few states in India, which has an action plan to prevent and combat human trafficking.”

The state’s plan of action, christened as Astitva, with a vision towards a trafficking free Bihar was approved by the cabinet in 2008.

The state government has adopted a programme to have special focus on the trafficking-prone districts like Purnea, Katihar, Kishanganj, Araria, Madhubani, Sitamarhi, East Champaran and West Champaran. A district-level anti-human trafficking cell has been constituted in 26 districts under supervision of the district magistrates.

A state-level anti-human trafficking cell has been formed, which is headed by the chief secretary.

Besides, short stay homes, especially for girls and women victims, for rehabilitation are already running in 28 districts. “At present, they have only four or five inmates but we will try to make more rescue operations. The government has taken up the issue very seriously and till now 340 children and 168 women victims have been rescued and 556 perpetrators have been issued chargesheets,” said Amanullah.

She also said a special police officer in every police station will be there to look after the rescue operations for trafficking. Amanullah added that a proper environment for studies would be made available to the child victims by providing them all the necessary resources at the rehabilitation centre.

Principal secretary social welfare department, Bihar, Amitabh Verma, said: “To synchronise with different NGOs and civil society representatives on this work of curtailing child and women trafficking, the state will not only act as a facilitator but also a development agent.”

He added: “Whenever they need funds on this issue or have some suggestions on changing the laws and provisions, the government will surely try to co-operate as much as possible. We are also initiating some sensitisation programmes for the police officials in the police training centre.”

Verma added that a directive has been issued to every state government to make an action plan for rehabilitation of commercial sex workers and it has to be submitted to the high courts by July 19 by every state government. Bihar, too, is working on the plan, he added.

According to a source, though 556 perpetrators have been chargesheeted, only one of them has been punished by the session court till today and investigation has been initiated in 54 cases.