The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has provided financial assistance to the tune of Rs 98.86 crores under “Nirbhaya Fund” to all States and Union Territories (UTs) during the financial years 2019-20 and 2020-21 for strengthening the existing Anti Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs) and for establishing new AHTUs covering all districts of the States and UTs.

‘Police’ and ‘Public Order’ are ‘State-List’ subjects under the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India.  Therefore, the intelligence gathering, investigation and prosecution vests with respective State Governments who are competent to deal with such matters under the extant provisions of law.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) provides regular financial assistance to the States and UTs for holding Judicial Colloquiums and State Level Conferences from time to time, which are aimed at the capacity building of law officers, police officers and other officials concerned with the issue of preventing and countering human trafficking. MHA had also issued an Advisory to the States and UTs, inter-alia, advising them that ‘intelligence’ and ‘surveillance’ mechanisms may be established for identifying the persons and gangs involved in human trafficking and for gathering information about their affiliations, modus operandi, etc. The States/UTs have also been advised that Police officers, especially those handling cases of human trafficking, should be trained and sensitized at regular intervals and they should be imparted knowledge of procedural laws, court rulings, administrative procedures, skills in child friendly investigation, including interviewing, interrogation, scientific data collection, facilitating victims/witness protection programmes etc.

This was stated by the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Ajay Kumar Mishra in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today.

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