NEW DELHI: The Global Slavery Index 2018 estimates that on any given day in 2016 there were nearly 8 million people living in modern slavery in India. In terms of prevalence there were 6.1 victims for every thousand people.

Among 167 countries India ranked 53 in terms of prevalence with North Korea at the top of the list with 104.6 per 1,000 and Japan registering the lowest prevalence rate of 0.3 per 1,000. However, as far as absolute numbers go India topped the list on prevalence. China found itself at 111th place with a prevalence rate of 2.8 per 1,000.

Reacting to the very high numbers cited for India in the Index, officials at the Ministry of Women and Child Development which tabled the anti-trafficking Bill in Lok Sabha on Wednesday questioned the very definition of modern slavery adopted for the research and also the sample size for interviews and the questions posed to those surveyed. The view that emerged from the ministry was that the Index was "flawed" in its interpretations as the terminology used is very broad based and words like "forced labour" need a more detailed elaboration in the Indian context where the socio-economic parametres are diverse and very nuanced. The ministry officials were of the view that the Index does not reflect the "true picture".

Meanwhile, the Index brought out by 'Walk Free Foundation' claims in its report that "transparency is really important to them". "In the context of this report, modern slavery covers a set of specific legal concepts including forced labour, debt bondage, forced marriage, slavery and slavery-like practices, and human trafficking," it is explained. It is pointed that although modern slavery is not defined in law. It is used as an umbrella term which refers to situations of exploitation that a person cannot refuse or leave because of threats, violence, coercion, deception, and abuse of power.

The estimation data were drawn from 54 surveys conducted in 48 countries which included a module on Modern Slavery, with a total sample of 71,158 individual interviews. The national estimates presented were calculated using individual and country-level risk factors of modern slavery. "The final set of risk factors were selected from an exhaustive list of variables to optimally predict confirmed cases of forced labour and forced marriage. The model was then used to generate average predicted probabilities of modern slavery by country".

The top brass at the WCD ministry have also questioned the sample size of those interviewed. "Is that not too small a number across such a diverse and wide spectrum of countries? Also questions like were you ever forced to work by an employer or a recruiter or ever been forced to marry cannot be answered in simple yes and no in the Indian scenario. The social context of a community or area have to be taken into account," a senior official said.

In the India chapter the study further states "while modern slavery clearly occurs within India, the realities of global trade and business make it inevitable that India, like many other countries globally, will also be exposed to the risk of modern slavery through the products it imports". Laptops, computers and mobile phones are India's highest value category of imports at risk of modern slavery (US$8.3 billion). It is pointed that India lacks a central legislative framework to regulate the public procurement process. Secondly, India obtains over 99 percent of its overall sugarcane. The value of this import totals nearly US$457 million. India also imports gold produced in Peru and North Korea, both of which are suspected to use modern slavery in their gold mining industries. Apparel imported from countries at risk of modern slavery amount to US$360 million. Lastly, India imports US$97.1 million worth of diamonds from Angola. Diamond extraction in Angola has over the past decades been linked to torture, murder, and forced displacement, and reportedly relies on both child labour and forced labour. It is pointed that India lacks a central legislative framework to regulate the public procurement process.

The Global Index also cites the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data to point that there were 8,132 reported cases of human trafficking across India in 2016. In the same year, 15,379 people were trafficked of whom 9,034 victims were below the age of 18. In addition, 23,117 people were rescued from trafficking situations of whom 14,183 people were below the age of 18. The NCRB report notes that the number of rescued victims is higher than the number of trafficked people as rescued victims may also include persons trafficked in the previous year. Most of the rescued victims reported being trafficked for the purpose of forced labour (10,509 victims), followed by sexual exploitation for prostitution (4,980 victims), and other forms of sexual exploitation (2,590 cases).

It is noted that India's economic growth has enabled the country to achieve its Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty. However, 'low-income states' such as Jharkhand, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh continue to face poverty rates that are disproportionately higher than in other states, with 62 percent of India's poorer populations residing in these states alone.

"Search for better economic and employment opportunities acts as a powerful incentive for people to migrate from low to high income states and internationally. New estimates of labour migration in India from the Economic Survey 2016-2017 indicate an annual average flow of close to nine million migrants internally between Indian states for the period 2011-2016. India also has a large influx of labour migrants from neighbouring countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh where open borders with India make it easy for individuals with these nationalities to migrate," it is stated.

It is pointed that a lack of official identity documents increases internal Indian migrant workers' vulnerability and reduces their capacity to access basic social services. Lack of social networks, as well as cultural and linguistic differences also add to the vulnerability of Indian migrant workers from other states. Children of Indian seasonal migrant workers are a particularly vulnerable group as they face barriers accessing education due to the isolation of the work sites where their parents work. This results in them ending up working alongside their parents. In 2017, it was reported that 200 children who had migrated from Odisha were rescued from a brick kiln where they were living and working with adults.

