Birgunj, April 26

It has been found that human trafficking via the Birgunj border has increased after the earthquake through the turbulent times of the Madhes agitation and the blockade at the Nepal-India border .

As per the data with the K I Nepal Birgunj office, as many as 77 women and children who were meant to be smuggled into India via Birgunj have been rescued so far this fiscal.

“Most of those who were being smuggled were to be taken to gulf countries through India,” said Usha Gurung, programme coordinator with K I Nepal, a non-government organisation working in the field of human trafficking control.

It is said that human traffickers’ preference for the Birgunj entry point has to do with the easy access through the railway to major Indian cities like Delhi and Kolkata from Raxaul, an Indian city bordering Birgunj.

“As the entire country was beset by the earthquake and blockade at the Birgunj-Raxaul border, the traffickers took advantage of this opportunity,” Gurung said.