Anti-trafficking Bill to be introduced in Parliament soon: Maneka Gandhi

Government will soon bring an anti-trafficking legislation in Parliament to cover rescue, relief and reintegration of the trafficked people.

Chandigarh, Oct 17: Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi on Monday said the government will soon bring an anti-trafficking legislation in Parliament to cover rescue, relief and reintegration of the trafficked people.

Addressing the Regional Editors' Conference here, Maneka Gandhi said: "The Government will try to introduce the Bill in the winter session of Parliament. It will cover rescue, relief and reintegration of trafficked persons, and for the first time will make a distinction between those trafficked and the traffickers."

Highlighting the steps being taken by the Government for the safety and protection of women and children of the country, the Minister said: "The 'Khoya Paya' portal -- to track the missing children -- has already reported nearly 6,000 cases of missing/sighted children since its launch last year.

Runaway/missing children are also being helped under Special Operating Procedures developed in association with railways."

She said 13,000 children had already been helped under this initiative and posters were being pasted in all railway coaches to report children in distress.

Speaking at the event, where editors from various states took part, the Minister also said the Government was working full time to "revamp the anganwadi system to change ways in which nutrition is being administered to children and pregnant women in them" and to ensure healthy children. It was also working for six months' mandatory maternity leave for working women for which the Ministry of Labour and Employment has moved to introduce amendments in the Act.

Editors and senior journalists from the northern states of Punjab, Haryana, UP, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Chandigarh and from the north-eastern states were part of the on-going two day conference.

IANS