The main focus of EMPOWER PEOPLE lies on awareness raising and sensitization trainings for law enforcement agencies. The organization is also offering direct victim support and assistance to women vulnerable to human trafficking and domestic violence.Three minor girls, who were rescued from a bar in November, were saved from being forced back into the profession after the police caught the bluff of three applicants pretending to be their relatives. The Kashimira police had raided the Amar Palace lodge in Mira Road on November 21 and rescued eight girls from there. The Thane magistrate had sent the girls to the rehabilitation centre at Ulhasnagar. The court had appointed a probation officer under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act to investigate about the age, character and suitability of the parents or guardians to rehabilitate the girls.
“In their statements, the girls said their poverty had forced them into the job,” said Anil Patil, senior inspector, Kashimira police station.
Patil said they rescue around 25 minors per week. “But once they are in rehabilitation centres, we loose track of them. Most of the times, the fake guardians are the owners of the bar where the girls worked,” he said.
On Monday, the girls were presented before the court where five of them were handed over to their parents and genuine guardians. However, three girls were sent back to the rehabilitation centre as the people pretending to be their guardians were caught lying.
“These girls will now be allowed to receive education and trained in their choice of vocational jobs so that they can earn a respectable living,” Patil said.
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