- The Lok Sabha has passed the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill 2018 on July 26, 2018.
- The Bill provides for the prevention, rescue, and rehabilitation of trafficked persons and seeks to establish a National Anti-Trafficking Bureau to investigate trafficking cases.
- It lays down a stringent punishment of 10 years to life imprisonment for aggravated forms of trafficking, which include buying or selling of persons for the purpose of bonded labour, bearing a child, as well as those where chemical substances are administered, and a survivor acquires life-threatening illnesses such as AIDS.
- The Central Government shall, by notification, establish a Bureau to be called the National Anti-Trafficking Bureau for exercising the powers and discharging its functions under this Act
- The State Government shall appoint a State Nodal Officer, not below the rank of Director in the State Government.
- The Central Government shall establish a National Anti-Trafficking Relief and Rehabilitation Committee under the chairmanship of Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development, by notification for providing relief and rehabilitation services to the victims.
- The appropriate Government shall establish a State Anti–Trafficking Committee under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary to oversee the implementation of this Act and advise the State Government and District Anti-Trafficking Committees on matters relating to prevention of trafficking, protection, repatriation and rehabilitation of victims.
- The appropriate Government shall, by notification, constitute for every District, a District Anti-Trafficking Committee for exercising the powers and performing such functions and duties in relation to prevention, rescue, protection, medical care, psychological assistance and need-based rehabilitation of victims.
- There shall be constituted a fund with an initial corpus of 10 crore rupees, by the Central Government to be called the Rehabilitation Fund for the welfare and rehabilitation of the victims under this Act.
- Where any property is, or is likely to be, used for the commission of an offence under this Act and the property is concealed, transferred or dealt with, in any manner which may result in frustrating any proceedings under this Act, the designated court may attach such property: Provided that the designated court shall give an opportunity to be heard to the person who is the owner or occupier of the property.
- The District Anti-Trafficking Committee or the Child Welfare Committee, as the case may be, shall be responsible for the repatriation of victims by co-ordinating with their counterparts in any other District.
- Upon application for interim relief by the victim, the District Anti-Trafficking Committee or Child Welfare Committee, as the case may be, shall take immediate steps to award interim relief to the victim as deemed appropriate not later than thirty days.
- The appropriate Government shall maintain either directly or through voluntary organisations or non-Governmental organisations as many Protection Homes as necessary and to be managed in the manner, as may be prescribed for the immediate care and protection of the victims or any person rescued.
