Bhubaneswar: Odisha registered 162 cases of human trafficking and a total of 1,305 victims in 2023, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi informed the Assembly on Monday, citing the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report.
Responding to a question from Congress MLA from Barabati-Cuttack Sofia Firdous, the Chief Minister said that among the victims, 644 were women and 348 were minors below the age of 18.
Majhi stated that investigations have been completed in 74 cases, while chargesheets have been filed in 64. Despite this progress, the state has not secured a single conviction in any of the trafficking cases where trials have concluded.
Elaborating on the government’s efforts to strengthen anti-trafficking mechanisms, the Chief Minister said Integrated Anti-Human Trafficking Units (IAHTUs) have been established across all 36 police districts, in addition to one at the CAW & CW Police Station. He noted that a Standard Operating Procedure issued by the NCPCR for rescue and post-rescue processes has been circulated to district police authorities, while a police circular introduced in 2022 mandates the creation of a detailed interrogation-based database of traffickers.
Majhi added that IAHTUs are closely monitoring trafficking cases in their respective districts and that police stations have been instructed to pursue investigations and arrests more rigorously. Officers posted in IAHTUs are also assisting with post-rescue care, producing victims before the Child Welfare Committee for rehabilitation and counselling.
Training and sensitisation initiatives have been scaled up as well, with the Biju Patnaik State Police Academy conducting specialised programmes for field officers. Advisory guidelines based on recommendations from a Parliamentary Standing Committee and from the National Human Rights Commission have been issued, and a series of regional workshops and state-level conferences have been organised to strengthen the capacity of district-level officers. Majhi further highlighted that officers have also been trained to handle cyber-enabled forms of trafficking in collaboration with anti-trafficking organisation Prajwala.
According to the government, special rescue drives conducted in 2025 led to the recovery of 1,209 missing children and 6,667 women from various parts of the state. IAHTUs have also been designated as official liaison points for CISF and RPF to improve coordination in detecting trafficking activities at transit locations.
Majhi said these measures reflect the state’s commitment to improving investigation quality, boosting prevention, and ensuring more effective rehabilitation of victims. However, the absence of convictions continues to underscore the challenges in achieving stronger legal outcomes in human traffic
