IMMORAL TRAFFICKING & THARUS OF WEST CHAMPARAN

(All the images are subject to IPR)

Photo by Ajay Kumar (Ojha)

Tharuhat of West Champaran (Bihar,India) is full  of beautiful spots and Bhikhana Thori is one such spot. During one of the courses of series of continuous interaction with the Tharus I came to know the story of stone quarries - yet another technique of exploiting the poor & innocent Tharu tribe.

Powerful people from outside manage to take lease for obtaining stone from an open excavation. These places are called stone quarries which unfortunately have turned out to be hotbed of exploitation and immoral trafficking. The Tharus happen to work there in large number as labourers  for their livelihood. Most of the labourers employed here  are the innocent Tharu women who get less wage compared to men. Other advantage of employing them is that they are more laborious and they cannot rebel. This apart, these helpless women labourers are  seduced and enticed to do all sorts of illicit work. Most of the Tharu women get trapped into it unknowingly and once trapped it becomes difficult for them to come out of that vicious circle.

Thrown out from their land by the big farm owners' "Sarkar Raj" they become landless labourers and go to work for earning their livelihood and find themselves in the net of flesh trade. This  has developed into an institution coming down from one generation to another. Tharuhat  of West Champaran  is  close  to Nepal border and wine of different variety is easily available which adds fuel to the fire of flesh trade and occupation of call girls. "So called cultured and civilized people" including  officers of different departments visit this place, stay in Forest Rest House or Railway Rest House. They come, they enjoy and even take away along with them some girls and offer them to bigwigs including politicians for getting their work done.

Such heart-rending & soul-stirring stories earlier did not hit the headlines of any Newspaper because Tharuhat remained just like an island away from the radar of reporters. But  recently, and specially after being made Schedule Tribe the Tharuhat has also become the focus point of journalists and other social activists.

"Poor Tharu Girls 'flee' Mumbai Bar" a report published in The Times of India is clear pointer to such flesh trade even after near-closure of stone quarries. Trafficking of girls from this remote area is a brutal onslaught on human rights. Two teenaged Tharu girls lifted the lid off immoral trafficking from Gaunaha block. Their saga is of abduction to Mumbai where they were sold to an agent who made them nautch girls in Mumbai bar.

Would there be an end to this inhuman & heinous crime of  'immoral trafficking' of the innocent Tharu women & girls by "so called educated , cultured and civilized people" ?