Berhampur: Childline officials Monday rescued eight minors including two girls from the Berhampur railway station. They were being trafficked to Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to work as bonded labourers.
The children were rescued from Platform No-2 of the railway station when they were waiting to board a train. The officials of Sishu Sahayata Kendra and Railway Protection Force (RPF) assisted the Childline officials during the rescue of the minors.
The rescued children admitted that they were being taken to various establishments in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu for work. Among the minors, five of them had train tickets to Tamil Nadu while the remaining three had tickets to Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh.
While three boys and two girls belong to Ganjam district, two boys are from Kandhamal and one minor from Gajapati district, Childline officials said.
The rescued minors were produced before the District Child Welfare Committee while five of them were handed over to their family members. The remaining three have been rehabilitated at an open-air shelter as their family members are yet to arrive.