Seven families of the Irular tribal community, including women and children, were rescued from a brick kiln in Arani town in Tiruvannamalai.

Revenue officials said 19 persons were rescued from the brick kiln. Of them, three families belong to Tiruvannamalai, two families come from Villupuram, and one family belongs to Ranipet district. “Based on an alert, we conducted searches in the brick kiln where we found the families who have been working there for the past few years,” said a revenue officer.

Initial inquiry revealed that the brick kiln belongs to M. Sundaram, who had paid an advance of ₹30,000 for each family, nearly two years ago. Since then, the families have been engaged in work at the brick kiln.

Revenue officials said that the rescued families were forced to stay in small huts without proper access to drinking water and no toilet facility. They were reportedly made to work for more than 15 hours a day.

The rescued workers told revenue officials that the person in-charge and his men would beat them up if they stood in the shade or even drank water. They were reportedly subjected to physical abuse, long working hours, and were living in terrible conditions, revenue officials said.

The rescued families were provided with release certificates signed by the Revenue Divisional Officer in Arani. The release certificate enables the rescued workers to receive financial aid and access government schemes meant for bonded labourers. Efforts will be taken to prevent the rescued boys and their families from falling into the trap again, officials said.