Paikmal: Police Thursday rescued 15 bonded labourers belonging to Mandosil village under Paikmal block in Bargarh district from Telangana. They reached their village Thursday.
The labourers had gone to work in a brick kiln at Pedakundu in Malakunda district of Talangana after being persuaded by a middleman. They had taken Rs 5,000 each from the middleman as advance.
However, the kiln owner forced them to work for around 18 hours a day. Their health condition deteriorated due to overwork. When they refused to work for long hours, they were subjected to torture. Even though they wanted to return to their native place, the kiln owner did not allow them to leave, they said.
However, Ishwar Haripal, who fell sick and did not get proper treatment, managed to escape along with his brother Jaleswar Haripal in December last year. On their return home, they approached the district labour officer (DLO) to rescue their co-workers.
The DLO consulted with the Telangana administration and got the labourers rescued. PNN
