Sewing a blouse that now earns her ₹200, Valli remembers a time not long ago when her days looked very different. Back then, she spent nearly 12 hours in the sugarcane fields, tying stalks under the sun and rain, without pay and with little control over her life.
It was in 2018 that the turnaround began. Valli and her husband, both then daily wage labourers, wanted to build a small house for their family. To arrange the money, they approached a person they knew from their village. In return, the couple agreed to work in the sugarcane fields associated with him, on the condition that they would earn wages and repay the amount gradually.
Instead, the work shrunk into slavery.
In the fields
For the next two years, the family moved between the sugarcane fields across parts of Karnataka, especially around Davanagere and some districts in neighboring Tamil Nadu.
While work starts at 6 a.m., Valli said she wakes up around 3 a.m., cooks food for the family and then goes to the fields. From about 6:00 a.m. until evening, her husband cut sugarcane while she tied the stalks, which were later loaded onto trucks.
Despite the long hours, the wages never came. “They only gave money for supplies,” Valli recalled. Even after a week’s work, the family didn’t have much to show for it. “Having one meal a day in itself seemed like a big deal.
Nomadic life
The family stayed in makeshift shelters near the workplaces and moved wherever the harvest took them. Their two children, a then three-year-old son and a two-year-old daughter, stayed near the fields while the couple worked.
Life, Valli said, was slowly disappearing beyond the fields. “When we were going through those difficult times, I had only one thought in my mind – my children should not go through the same trauma.
During the monsoon, they carried tarpaulins to keep out the rain while continuing to tie the stick, she said, adding that women workers were also expected to work during menstruation, without access to basic facilities.
“We never realized we were in slavery until it was too late,” she said.
Finally free
Things only changed when the family was rescued with the support of an organization working with forced labor survivors. After her rescue, she joined the Udayonmukha Trust, which supports survivors by providing skill training in tailoring, jewelery making and handicrafts.
Valli joined an advanced tailoring training program where she learned how to sew garments such as blouses, churidars and dresses. “They taught us many things, especially about building better livelihoods. They encouraged me to take up tailoring, which I never imagined I would learn at the time,” Valli said.
Each blouse she sews now earns her around ₹200 and with it a sense of independence.
“We are happy now. We earn money for the work we do. We are not restricted or controlled by anyone. We have the freedom to make decisions for our family,” she said.
Her hopes now center on the future she wants for her children. “I want them to have a good education. They should be able to choose their own career and their own future,” she added.
Rehabilitation assistance
After being formally recognized as a released bonded labourer, she received government aid for rehabilitation. She used the grant to complete the construction of the house that she and her husband had originally borrowed money to build, which eventually plunged them into slavery.
A survivor of forced labor herself, Valli also hopes to help others who may still be in a similar situation. At the same time, he believes that rescue alone is not enough. Survivors, he says, need financial, psychological and social support to rebuild their lives.
Published – March 8, 2026 08:09 IST
