Seven families consisting of 28 members, including 12 children, have been rescued from bonded labour at a woodcutting unit in neighbouring Kancheepuram district, officials said Monday.
The families have been given between Rs 1,000 and Rs 12,000 as advance by a contractor who has been employing them in several such units for the past two years, Kancheepuram sub-collector S Saravanan told PTI.
"However, there has been no physical harassment, but the salaries paid to the labourers were lesser than the minimum wages, their movement were restricted and they were given an advance to take up the job," the official said.
An FIR has been registered against the contractor.
Based on information given by the vigilance committee members and locals, teams headed by Tahsildar rescued the 28 from the unit in Vellakottai village at Sriperumbudur, near here.
Early this year, nine people belonging to two families, including five children, were rescued from bonded labour in the district, he added.
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