Subhasree and Nihar Raptan are helping trafficking survivors who have to deal with the social stigma attached to their past after going through physical and psychological trauma of being forced into the sex .Subhasree Raptan from West Bengal's Sunderbans district, was merely 19 when she solved her first human trafficking caseIt was in 2013, and Subhasree, who was in her first year of college, learned about a minor who was forced into prostitution by her brother-in-law. The minor had reached out to Goranbose Gram Bikash Kendra (GGBK), an NGO founded by Subhasree's father, Nihar Raptan.
"My father was involved in another case, and so, I was asked to keep in touch with the minor. The brothel abandoned her after she got pregnant, and her family refused to take her back," Subhasree recalls in a conversation with The Better India.
"I was studying fundamental rights in my Political Science class, and here was this minor girl, whose rights to life and education were in danger," she adds.
With Nihar's help, she approached the local police and registered an FIR. Not stopping there, she admitted the young girl to a shelter home where she was introduced to a doctor and psychologist.
"Healing was slow, but it happened over time. Today, the survivor conducts awareness workshops on child trafficking in villages, schools, colleges, and universities and actively helps the NGO in rescue operations. She and her baby are healthy, and live in their own home," smiles Subhasree.
Seeing the girl's life improve was Subhasree's biggest motivation to take forward her father's project even if it meant giving up on her dreams of joining the IAS.
"I completed my Masters in English and joined my father's NGO as a full-time employee. Along the way, I also completed a course in combating human trafficking from TISS, Mumbai, and Trafficking Prevention from NIPCCD, Assam. I also completed a special course to improve the NGO's rehabilitation services, from the International Youth Centre, Delhi," she mentions.
In the last 35-odd years, Subhasree and Nihar's NGO has successfully rescued and rehabilitated 2,500 girls, including minors. "I was preparing for Civil Services to serve people as an IAS officer. My goal still has not changed, except that now I serve people differently," she says.
How It All Started
GGBK was started in 1985 in the aftermath of a devastating cyclone that hit Nihar's village, Goranbose in 24 South Parganas district. Agricultural fields were damaged, and farmers were forced to migrate to other regions.
Nihar was among the very few graduates in his village, so he collaborated with a few friends and started post-cyclone relief work to help the village residents avail of government benefits. As they resolved issues of food and housing, another serious matter emerged.
Poverty had forced some families to trade their daughters or kidnap local girls for money. This was the beginning of human trafficking in the village, which eventually spread at the district level.
"A minor girl was trafficked to Mumbai via a train by a neighbour. Since we had helped the villagers in times of crisis, her mother approached me. Our aggressive investigation led us to this neighbour who later confessed to the horrendous crime, and the girl was rescued," Nihar tells TBI.
Two years later in 1987, Nihar formally registered GGBK to prevent human trafficking and rescue and rehabilitate survivors.
Nihar and Subhasree undertake primarily two types of rescue operations—via networking and on-field.
They have developed a strong network in the district with the community, the local and state police force and NGOs working towards the same cause across India.
Working in unison with the community was the first step, the duo took to establish trust and a stronghold. "The biggest advantage of a community-led initiative is that the whole operation can be nipped in the bud. It is easier to catch the suspect while he is in the region," shares Subhasree.
They trained a few local women in how to identify a business deal while being discreet, how to pass on the information to GGBK, how to stall a suspect till the police arrive, and so on.
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