New Delhi: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report stating that a 15-year-old boy from Bihar’s Kishanganj district suffered months of bonded labour after being separated from his father at Haryana’s Bahadurgarh Railway Station.
According to the press report, the minor had stepped off the train to fetch water but could not reboard due to heavy crowding, following which he missed the train and was left alone at the station.
The boy reportedly remained missing for eight months, during which he was subjected to bonded labour, before managing to reach his home with his left arm severed at the elbow.
Observing that the contents of the media report, if true, “raise a serious issue of violation of human rights”, the apex human rights body has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police of Haryana, as well as the Commissioner of Police of Gautam Budh Nagar and the District Magistrate of Kishanganj, calling for a detailed response within two weeks.
The NHRC has also sought information on whether any compensation has been paid to the victim and whether a Disability Certificate has been issued to enable him to avail benefits under the Persons with Disabilities (PwD) Act, 2016.
It has further noted that a Bonded Labour Release Certificate — mandatory for rehabilitation and compensation under the Central Sector Scheme for Rehabilitation of Bonded Labourers-2021 — is yet to be issued by the authorities.
As per the media report dated January 12, after missing the train, the boy stayed at the railway station for two days before a man lured him on the pretext of providing employment and took him to Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh.
It added that the minor was allegedly forced to work from early morning till night, including taking cattle to graze and cutting fodder, and was subjected to frequent physical abuse. The report further stated that when the boy attempted to escape from the bondage, he was caught and beaten.
During the course of the forced labour, his left hand was reportedly severed at the elbow by a fodder-cutting machine. The employer allegedly abandoned him on a roadside without providing any medical assistance. Subsequently, an unidentified person took the injured child to a hospital in Haryana’s Nuh district, from where he fled out of fear of being recaptured. He reportedly walked barefoot for over three kilometres before being noticed by two government school teachers, who informed the Government Railway Police at Haryana’s Bahadurgarh.
The boy eventually returned to his home in August 2025.
(IANS)
