Only nine of 600 districts have anti-trafficking cells: PC

Human trafficking happens on a "very large scale" in India, but there are just nine districts in the country which are having anti-trafficking cells, Union home minister P Chidambaram said today.

Chidambaram, who was speaking at the launch of a book Human Trafficking – Dimensions, Challenges and Responses written by senior IPS officer PM Nair on human trafficking, said most countries are slow to waking up to its gravity.

He said human trafficking is one of the gravest crimes in the society. "Human trafficking does not (only) mean trafficking people from one country to the other. Human trafficking takes place within the country also. Women and children are bought and sold within the country," he said.

Chidambaram said the scale of human trafficking in India is not quite clear or determined but added, "I think it is a fair assumption that it takes place on a very large scale."

"We have set up nodal officers in human trafficking in most states, but there are only nine districts in the country which have anti-human trafficking cells. Nine out of over 600 districts," he said.

Former police officer Kiran Bedi, who also spoke at the launch, said human trafficking is a USD32 billion industry worldwide and "is a crime which has many faces."