Unite to eradicate forced labour: Activists

Several activists, lawyers and members of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) Saturday appealed to the people to unite to eradicate the practice of forced labour from India.

"Organisations working for welfare of women and children may join us to fight against forced labour practice in India," said S.A.R. Prasanna Venkatachariar Chaturvedi Swami, chairman of the Ramanujan Mission Trust.

He said the government, with the help of NGOs, could help to eradicate forced labour practice from society.

"It is labour performed under duress, usually by relatively large groups of people under threat of some form of punishment," said M.N. Krishnamani, senior advocate and president of Human Rights Defense International.

"Forced labour takes different forms, including debt bondage, trafficking and other forms of modern slavery," said Bharti Nirla, national project manager of International Labour Organisation.

She said victims were often the most vulnerable - women and girls forced into prostitution, migrants trapped in debt, and sweetshop or farm workers kept illegally and paid little or nothing.