Women trafficking rife in Bihar's Seemanchal; locals says problem endemic

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Bihar reported 111 human trafficking cases in 2021, an increase from 75 cases in 2020

In March 2020, when the Covid-19 lockdown was imposed, 21-year-old Haseena Khatun (name changed), from Majgama village of Bihar's eastern Kishanganj district married Afaque Alam.

A week later, in spite of the lockdown, they moved over 1,600 km northwest to Chandigarh in a private vehicle. "I started doing flesh trade against my consent to protect my life," said Khatun, in a statement registered at Kishanganj district's Kochadhaman police station on August 25, 2022. After the wedding, her husband behaved well for a month and then forced her into flesh trade. When she refused, Alam beat her up, and once brandished