519 people fell victim to human trafficking in last two years in Kerala

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A staggering 519 people – 236 children, 234 women and 49 men – from the state were victims of human trafficking in the last two years, police data revealed.

According to official statistics from the anti-human trafficking police unit for the years 2022 and 2023, consulted by TNIE, 257 cases of human trafficking were registered in police stations across the state during the two years. The highest number of cases, 75, were recorded in Kasaragod.

The annual distribution of data showed that the number of cases and the number of victims decreased in 2023 compared to 2022. While 152 cases were recorded in 2022, 105 cases were recorded in 2023. In 2022, 149 women and 143 children. fell prey to traffickers, compared to 85 women and 93 children in 2023. In Kasaragod, 137 people — 22 men, 53 women and 62 children — were trafficked over the two years. According to the two-year data, Idukki stood second with 49 cases, while Ernakulam was third with 45 cases.

Kasaragod district police chief P Bijoy said the numbers were increasing as the police added an IPC section related to trafficking in serious crimes, such as rape, involving minors.

Laxity in investigating human trafficking cases (ex-DGP)

“These cases are not linked to human trafficking to other countries. The police register cases of kidnapping in which minors are taken without parental consent, as well as cases of rape in which minors are victims, under human trafficking,” said the district police chief. de Kasaragod, P Bijoy.

Experts in the field think otherwise. Prime Minister Nair, retired DGP and former Anti-Human Trafficking Project Coordinator at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), said that if the number of women and children who have not yet been found were added to the list, the number of trafficking cases will see a marked jump.

He also said that in sex trafficking cases, police investigations are generally lax.

“In such cases, police usually limit the investigation to the destination. The investigation does not extend to the source, the place from where the victim was trafficked and the places where the victim stayed in transit. Similarly, the investigation is conducted informally in cases of forced labor and child labor. If a serious investigation is carried out, the number of human trafficking cases will increase significantly,” said Prime Minister Nair.

Police have arrested 415 people, including 46 women, in human trafficking cases over the past two years. While 295 people were arrested in 2022, 116 were arrested in 2023. In Kasaragod, 106 people were arrested in two years, including five women.