DCW writes to Maneka Gandhi on trafficking of women

Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal on Thursday urged Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi to convene a meeting of the Central Advisory Committee to combat trafficking of women.

In her letter to the union minister, Maliwal wrote: "I would like to bring to your notice that a Central Advisory Committee (CAC) to combat trafficking (women) and suggest measures for rehabilitation of children and girls rescued had been re-constituted in the ministry in 2013. However, the same had not met till date."

"I would request you to kindly look into the matter and direct the department to convene a meeting of this committee at the earliest," she said in the letter.

Earlier, Maliwal met Gandhi and the two had a discussion on combating trafficking of women in the city.

She also wrote to Delhi Chief Secretary K.K. Sharma and urged him to reconstitute the state level coordination committee and organise its meeting as soon as possible.

The letter read: "It has been brought to the notice of DCW that State Level Coordination Committee to combat trafficking and rehabilitate sex workers was constituted as per the orders of the Supreme Court in 2012. But the meeting of the committee has not been convened even once in the last three years."

"Committee consists of over 25 senior officers and probably that is why the committee never met, considering the fact that it will be difficult to get all 25 officers to meet every month."

"In this regard I urge you to kindly reconstitute this committee with lesser number of officers and convene its meeting at the earliest so that effective steps can be taken to combat trafficking and rehabilitate sex workers," she said in the letter.