SIVAGANGA: Is rescuing a person from the shackles of bonded labour enough for him/her to break the chains and lead a new and normal life? If you think the answer is yes, you are wrong. Thousands of people are rescued from bonded labour in a year, but the process really doesn’t end there. The real struggle for those rescued starts only then.
For instance, take the case of a 41-year-old woman, S Kaleeshwari from Pillur village of Sivaganga, who was rescued from bonded labour along with her husband and four children-Guganraj, Mahalakshmi, Saravanan and baby Sandhiya- in June 2021. Her elder daughter, Mahalakshmi, a student of Class 10, is facing trouble due to lack of an Aadhaar card. Besides, the family of six is awaiting the completion of their newly constructed house, which is facing a fund crunch.
Kaleeshwari’s family took a loan of Rs 50,000 in the 2010s. To repay the debt, she and her husband, M Sankaiya and four children first worked under Gunasekaran from 2016 as brick kiln workers. Later another man, Gandhi took the couple’s minor son, Guganraj, for rearing cattle. Gandhi and Gunasekaran had known each other for a long period of time. Based on a tip-off, A Jeevanandham, executive director of NGO, Integrated Rural Community Development Society (IRCDS) and then a former CWC member, along with labour department launched an investigation and found that the family of six had been trapped in bonded labour and child labour for years because of the Rs 50,000 loan.
The family was rescued in 2021, and now Guganraj does odd jobs, Mahalakshmi is studying in Class 10, Saravanan is in Class 8, and Sandhiya is in Class 1. The former CWC member added the family still does not have a proper house. Kaleeshwari works as a housekeeper in Erode and stays with her youngest child, Sandhiya. Mahalakshmi and Saravanan study in different places in Sivaganga district. Sankaiya runs an ironing and laundry business in different parts of the district.
“We slogged like animals, hoping one day we would be free. Now we work and live in different places. We still cannot live together as a family and have not enjoyed family life for years,” Kaleeshwari said.
The office of district collector P Akash stated that Mahalakshmi was taken to Aadhaar Seva Kendra in Madurai thrice to get her Aadhaar, but it got delayed due to some biometric mismatch. However, efforts are still going on. With regard to housing, the family was issued a free patta, and a house is also being constructed under Kalaignar Kanavu Illam scheme. Although the construction is almost over, due to funding issues, it has been delayed, but he assured it would be finished soon.
