70 Dadan labourers rescued;Labour contractor arrested

Bhubaneswar, Oct 16 (UNI) Police today arrested a contractor for trying to supply 70 ''dadan'' labourers including women and children illegally to Hyderabad.

Bolangir Deputy Superintendent of Police N C Dandasena told UNI over phone that one Benu Hendra of Kantabanjhi area, was arrested from a forest under the Tureikela Police station of Bolangir district during a raid last night.

The DSP said Hendra had lured 70 labourers from Sonepur district on false promises of providing them jobs at Jamki under the Tureikela Police station. He however, tried to send them to Hyderabad, which the labourers opposed and refused to go.

The labour contractor and one of his associates confined the labourers in the forest and started torturing them.

Mr Dandasena said Hendra was arrested u/s 342,367,368 and 34 IPC for illegally confining the labourers inside the forest and trying to supply them to Hyderabad.

He was produced before a court of the Judicial Magistrate First Class Kantabanjhi today.

He said two of the labourers managed to escape from their clutch and lodged a complaint with the Bolangir Police. A police team raided the forest and rescued the labourers including 12 children.

All the labourers, Mr Dandsena said had been sent to their respective village. One of the associates of Hendra, however, managed to escape and efforts are on to nab him at the earliest, the DSP said.

UNI