The Uttar Pradesh government has issued a directive to the urban development authorities to conduct an inspection of all slaughterhouses in the state and submit a report to the government in a week.
The order was issued after the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in a joint operation with the UP Police busted a child labour racket in Ghaziabad on May 29. 57 minor children, including 31 girls and 26 boys, including individuals with disabilities, were employed illegally as bonded labourers in a slaughterhouse owned by Yasin Qureshi in Ghaziabad.
NCPCR chief Priyank Kanoongo took to X to inform about the orders issued by the UP Govt against all slaughterhouses in the state.
उत्तरप्रदेश के एक बूचड़खाने में बच्चों उपयोग पशुओं को काटने व माँस की प्रॉसेसिंग करने में किया जा रहा था।दो महीने पूर्व @NCPCR_ ने मौक़े पर पहुँच कर बच्चों को रेस्क्यू कर FIR दर्ज करवायी थी एवं तत्संबंध में राज्य के सभी पशु क़त्लखानों की जाँच के लिए अनुशंसा की थी।
— प्रियंक कानूनगो Priyank Kanoongo (@KanoongoPriyank) July 16, 2024
जिसके परिपालन… pic.twitter.com/K9oF8pQGxc
On Wednesday (29th May), the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights and a police team jointly raided a slaughterhouse in Ghaziabad. The teams rescued 57 minors from there, including 31 girls and 26 boys illegally made to work in the slaughterhouse owned by one Yasin Qureshi. All of them were being made to do animal slaughtering.
According to reports, the rescued minors were lured from UP, Bihar, and West Bengal by promising them jobs in Ghaziabad. Instead, they were being subjected to inhumane work at the slaughterhouse. Now, action is being taken under sections of the Labour Act and IPC, in this matter.
NCPCR Chairperson Priyank Kanoongo said that they had been getting information about this for a long time. After receiving concrete input, a joint raid was conducted at the International Agro Food slaughterhouse in the Mussoorie area of Ghaziabad. It is owned by a man named Yasin Qureshi who is a major player in the meat industry.
The minors were engaged in the work of cutting and packing meat in the unit. Some of the children were kept as bonded labour, they were kept hostage and forced to work in the factory for the last several years. All the children were paid Rs 300 per day for their work.
According to the International Agro Food’s claims, their factories are HACCP-approved and ISO-certified. The animals are slaughtered in strict accordance with the Islamic practice of Halal. They export their meat products to most global destinations including all West African, CIS, Middle East, Egypt, South Asian, and Far Eastern countries. The meat products produced are supplied directly to importers, the catering industry, supermarkets, and wholesalers under our popular brands at highly competitive prices.
