Appa Rao’s fateful chai stop
Twenty years ago, Appa Rao, an Andhra Pradesh resident, got off the train to have a cup of tea at a Chennai station and never made it back home. He ended up missing the train. With broken Tamil and no money, Appa Rao somehow ended up on a goat farm, where he would end up working as a bonded labourer for the next two decades!
The owner of the farm, Annadurai, refused to help him with money to return to his village. Left without alternatives, Appa Rao was forced to stay and work there. He spent the next 20 years toiling on the farm without pay — a victim of bonded labour.
He was finally discovered on February 9, 2025, at the goat farm in Kadambankulam, Kalaiyarkoil taluk, by a team conducting a monthly awareness campaign. The operation was led by I. Muthu, the Assistant Commissioner of the Labour Department. Annadurai, was booked by the local police for bonded labour and human trafficking. Appa Rao was moved to an old-age home until authorities could trace his family. A sum of ₹30,000 was credited to his first-ever bank account, with the remaining ₹70,000 to be deposited upon conviction of the accused.
Finding a way back home after 20 years!
Due to his fading memory, the only details Appa Rao could recall were the names of his wife, Seethamma, and his daughter, Sayamma. He couldn’t remember his village’s name, only that he was from Pithapuram in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.
Officials scoured the internet to piece together his identity. Eventually, a couple reached out to the district office, identifying themselves as Appa Rao’s daughter and son-in-law. After thorough background checks confirmed their claims, Appa Rao was finally reunited with his family.
In the 20 years that Appa Rao was missing, his wife Seethamma had passed away, consumed by the grief of his absence. In a bittersweet return, he found solace in being back in his village and spending time with his grandchildren. The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act was passed in 1976, yet nearly 50 years later, such atrocities continue to happen.
Appa Rao’s story is a stark reminder that social change is not a sprint but a marathon — a long, ongoing journey towards justice and equality
Image Credits:
https://legalvidhiya.com/a-critical-analysis-on-the-bonded-labour-system-abolition-act-1976/
https://www.dtnext.in/news/tamilnadu/17-years-a-slave-how-tn-ap-officials-rescued-reunited-bonded-labourer-with-kin-836305.
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