KATHMANDU, Feb 18: The 179 people who were rescued from the towns in Indo-Myanmar border of Manipur have returned home through Kakadbhitta, Maiti Nepal said. 

On February 1 and February 2, 179 people – 147 women and 32 men, were intercepted by the Manipur police in Imphal and Moreh.

The chief minister of Manipal, N Biren Singh had handed over the rescued people to Nepali authorities yesterday, according to the Press Trust of India. The Nepali team was led by counselor Prakash Adhikari at an official event held in Khuman Lampak of Imphal.

According to the PTI, Manipuri law enforcement officials said that this was the biggest rescue operation in the region and that the officials believed that the women were to be trafficked to different cities of South Asian and Middle-East countries through Myanmar. 

According to a story on ScrolIn, Myanmar is emerging as the new route to human trafficking and Moreh was becoming a valid “port of entry” into the country. Before that, travelling to Myanmar from India usually meant flying into Yangon. Travel through the land border at Manipur required obtaining a special permit from the Myanmar government in addition to a visa – a process that former applicants describe as long-winded and mired in red tape.

 
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