As many as 30 girls, including minors, have been rescued from the clutches of traffickers in Odisha's Ganjam and Kandhamal districts, police said today.
While 24 girls, including eight minors, were rescued from Berhampur station on Friday, six others were found in a Bhubaneswar-bound bus at G Udayagiri in Kandhamal district the same day, they said.
The bigger group was being taken to Tamil Nadu. Girls have been handed over to Childline activists, and one person, identified as Kasian Digal from Baliguda area, was arrested, police said adding they had detained two more persons.
"We are checking the antecedents of the two persons and examining other factors before registering cases against them," said Berhampur railway police station inspector N K Mohapatra.
G Udayagiri Sub-Divisional Police Officer, S Bariha said the girls from Kandhamal belong to Baliguda, Raikia and Daringbadi areas.
Police said all the girls were below 23 years of age.
Girls said they were being taken to be engaged in tailoring work near Chennai, a Childline volunteer said.
On August one, 16 girls including eight minors were rescued from Berhampur railway station. On August 14, nine girls, including four minors, were rescued from Daringbadi area of Kandhamal district. Two women were arrested in the case.
"The interior tribal pockets of Ganjam, Gajapati and Kandhamal districts have become a major source for traffickers who lure unsuspecting girls by promising them decent jobs outside Odisha," said Sudhir Sabat convener of Campaign Against Child Labour (CACL) here.
