The report, ‘Migrant Bonded Labour in India,’ was launched in the presence of rescued workers, legal experts, academics and activists in New Delhi on Friday
NEW DELHI — The National Campaign Committee for Eradication of Bonded Labour (NCCEBL) has released a scathing report accusing the government of failing to enforce the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, despite the continued existence of modern-day slavery across India.
The report, “Migrant Bonded Labour in India,” was launched in the presence of rescued workers, legal experts, academics and activists at the Press Club of India here on Friday.
NCCEBL Convener Nirmal Gorana said the findings exposed “an absolute failure of the government in implementing the law and protecting the most basic rights of workers.”
He said: “There are people working all their life in free India but as slaves.” Gorana alleged that the administration often sides with factory owners and contractors instead of supporting victims.
Core Provisions Ignored
The report says key mechanisms mandated under the law—such as summary trials, functioning vigilance committees, and proper identification of bonded labourers—remain largely non-operational. In many cases, workers are forced to sign documents they cannot read, while those rescued struggle to access even basic support.
A major obstacle, the report notes, is the “deliberate difficulty” in defining who qualifies as a bonded labourer, allowing employers and officials to escape accountability.
‘Law is Dead Without Action’
Senior Supreme Court advocate Sanjay Parikh criticised the near-total absence of FIRs in bonded labour cases, calling it a fatal breakdown in enforcement.
“The law is dead without action. Filing an FIR is the lifeblood of implementation. Without FIRs, the bonded labour abolition act is just an ink on paper,” Parikh said, adding that this failure prevents proper identification, release certificates and rehabilitation.
Workers Denied Basic Entitlements
The report highlights widespread gaps in victim rehabilitation. The initial ₹10,000 compensation is described as grossly insufficient, and many workers are unable to secure MNREGA employment despite being eligible. This pushes freed labourers back into debt bondage.
Presenting survey findings, Jindal University’s Prof Preeti Krishnan said, “Eighty-five percent of these workers cannot access basic support like MNREGA. In 80 per cent of documented cases, no FIR was filed. The average debt they owe is six times less than the wages withheld by employers. The system is engineered to keep them enslaved.”
Brick Kilns and Institutional Silence
Aditi, President of JNU Students’ Union, pointed to the lack of mandatory complaint committees in brick kilns—one of the most vulnerable sectors.
“Brick kiln owners systematically ignore this legal requirement. Without any complaint mechanism, exploitation continues unchecked,” she said.
Sandeep Chachra of ActionAid India criticised the economic framework driving bonded labour. “When profit is the only metric, the model kills the labourer,” he said, urging a shift toward a rights-based development approach.
Gorana warned that India’s commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly on eliminating forced labour by 2030, would remain “an empty promise” unless bonded labour issue is addressed urgently.
The organisation called on the government to officially acknowledge the ongoing prevalence of bonded labour and fix implementation gaps in vigilance committees, identification and summary trials.
It also demanded that reform rescue and rehabilitation mechanisms to ensure long-term economic independence for freed workers.
NCCEBL, a national network working to rescue and rehabilitate bonded labourers, said the report should serve as a wake-up call for authorities to confront the systemic failures enabling exploitation.
