Manipur has declared a determined war against drugs. The State government, police and civil society have stepped up enforcement, awareness programmes and inter-agency coordination to confront drug trafficking and substance abuse. The fight is being treated as a serious battle for the future of the State’s youth.
It is now time to ask an equally important question: where is the war against human trafficking?
Human trafficking is no less destructive than the trafficking of drugs. Drugs destroy lives through addiction; human trafficking destroys lives through exploitation, abuse and the loss of freedom. Women and children lured with promises of employment can end up being transported far from home and forced into circumstances they never consented to.
Recent action by the Social Welfare Department and Manipur Police shows that the threat is real. In one reported operation in Imphal East, a young girl was rescued and four persons were arrested in connection with an alleged trafficking racket. The suspects were reportedly planning to take girls to Delhi for sexual exploitation.
Such operations deserve appreciation. But they should also compel the government to look beyond individual arrests.
Manipur Police has nine Anti-Human Trafficking Units, indicating that an institutional mechanism already exists. The question is whether these units have been provided sufficient manpower, resources, training, intelligence networks and inter-State coordination to function with the same urgency and visibility that characterise the campaign against narcotics.
This is where the government needs to strengthen its approach.
The recent involvement of Social Welfare Department Director Sheikh Abdul Hakim in pursuing a suspected trafficker from Delhi to Imphal, after securing transit remand, demonstrates what determined coordination between departments can achieve. But an anti-trafficking campaign cannot depend on the initiative of individual officers alone. It must become a permanent and adequately supported institutional priority.
The government should consider strengthening Anti-Human Trafficking Units across the State, particularly in vulnerable areas. Police, Social Welfare authorities, child-protection agencies, transport authorities and their counterparts in other States must have effective channels for sharing information and acting quickly on complaints.
Recruitment scams deserve particular attention. Young people seeking employment are vulnerable to fraudulent agents and intermediaries who promise jobs outside Manipur. Verification mechanisms for recruitment agencies and employment offers should be strengthened, while public awareness campaigns should clearly explain how traffickers operate and where victims or families can seek immediate assistance.
There is also a need to examine the entire trafficking chain. Arresting the person who transports or shelters a victim is only one part of the investigation. The recruiters, financiers, facilitators, transporters and destination-based networks must also be identified. If evidence establishes their involvement, prosecution must follow.
The fight must also extend beyond rescue.
A rescued victim needs safety, medical care, counselling, legal assistance, rehabilitation and support to return to a dignified life. A trafficked person must never be blamed for having been deceived or exploited. The responsibility lies with those who profit from another human being’s vulnerability.
The comparison with the anti-drug campaign is not meant to diminish the seriousness of the narcotics problem. Rather, it highlights the need for the same level of urgency when the victims are human beings whose freedom and dignity are being traded for profit. Manipur has demonstrated that a sustained campaign against an organised social threat is possible when government agencies, police and communities work together.
The government must now bring human trafficking firmly into that circle of priority.
A State fighting to protect its younger generation cannot afford to overlook those who prey upon vulnerable women and children. Every trafficking case should be treated not merely as an isolated criminal incident but as a possible window into a wider network.
The war against drugs must continue. But alongside it, Manipur needs a stronger, visible and sustained war against human trafficking.
The message to traffickers must be as clear as the message being sent to drug networks: vulnerable people are not commodities, and Manipur will not allow its women and children to be bought, transported or exploited for profit.
