Exploited for months, migrant family returns home from Hyderabad

Bolangir: After 11 months of torture and exploitation, a migrant family of Titlagarh in Bolangir district has finally returned home from Hyderabad.

The family from Siker village under Titlagarh block of the district had moved to Hyderabad to work in a brick kiln as labourers. The brick kiln owner had assured them to pay Rs 30,000 for two months of work. Moreover, the owner had also given Rs 20,000 to the family in advance before they joined.

However, things didn't go well after a while. The owner did not pay a  penny to the family even after they worked rigorously for 11 months. He also allegedly started torturing the labourers and even restricted them to go outside.

“There was no way to seek help as he did not let us to go outside. He used to beat us after taking us to his office. What was more more painful was  he kept us in separate rooms for around six months. I was with my child  in one room while my husband had been kept somewhere else,” said victim Duduna Rout.

Asked, Sub-Collector Girish Singh said, “We would collect all the details, including pending wage from the brick kiln owner and take steps to give the family their due.”