In a piece of harrowing news from Maharashtra, it has come to light that 11 labourers were illegally confined, tied up with chains by contractors and forced to work for more than 12 hours in a well in the Wakharwadi village of Osmanabad district. Police have managed to rescue these labourers and arrested four persons, including two contractors.
The labourers coming from different cities were duped by an agent on the premise of providing employment. After they came to Osmanabad, they were given alcohol and separated into two groups. They were taken to the worksite by the contractors, where they were forced to work from day to night, provided food only once a day and chained up to prevent their escape. The labourers developed fungal infections on their feet due to working for too long in the water.
One of the labourers reportedly escaped the village and his family members narrated his entire ordeal to the police. It was difficult for the police to believe the story initially but later confirmed the shocking case of inhuman treatment when they reached the location. The arrested persons include two contractors, Krishna Baloo Shinde and Santosh Shivaji Jadhav
Sharing his experience, one of the labourers, Amol Nimbalkar, said that the workers were beaten up when they protested against being chained up by the contractors and their phones and money were also confiscated.
"In case there was any mistake in our work, we were beaten up again. We were not given any leaves even after having several blisters on our feet," he said.
Police inspector Jagdish Raut said that a team was deployed to corroborate the escaped labourer's statement after consultation with Osmanabad SP Atul Kulkarni.
"We found some labourers chained up and some working in the well. After interrogation, they told us that six labourers were similarly confined and chained in another location. We rescued 11 labour workers in total," he said.
Also read: Kejriwal may skip Opposition meet in Patna tomorrow. Conditions Apply
