New Delhi, Oct 29 (PTI) India is committed to addressing the human trafficking problem by according it the "high priority" and other countries should work to eliminate the "curse," Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta said on Friday.

The law officer was virtually addressing the 19th meeting of the Prosecutors General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) where the menace of human trafficking was discussed and it was attended by the chief law officers from seven countries.

Also Read | Shirur Vidhan Sabha Constituency in Maharashtra: Sitting MLA, Candidates For Assembly Elections 2019, Results And Winners.

Addressing the event, Mehta highlighted that the Indian government is concerned with the problem of trafficking of persons, especially of women and children, and recognizes that measures must be taken to prevent it, punish the traffickers and assist and protect the victims, including protecting their human rights.

“The commitment to address the problem of trafficking in human beings is a high priority item for the Government of India, which is reflected in various legislations and policy documents,” he said, adding that around 161 countries are affected by human trafficking.

Also Read | Odisha BSE 10th Result 2019 Not Today: Class 10 Board Exam Scores to Be Declared Soon Online at bseodisha.ac.in; Here's List of Website to Check Marks.

The solicitor general emphasized, “Human trafficking poses a serious challenge to the development of human potential and pushes millions to poverty, penury, and suffering. We should all work together to eliminate this curse from our countries.”

He said there is a need to cooperate bilaterally and multilaterally to effectively eliminate the crime, believing that trafficking in persons is a national as well as a transnational crime, where criminals work across boundaries.

Mehta further said that to deter traffickers and bring them to justice, it is necessary to give priority to the investigation and prosecution of traffickers and protect the victims of such offences.

“I urge my fellow colleagues and their countries to cooperate bilaterally and multilaterally to effectively eliminate this crime,” he said.

He highlighted the initiatives taken by the Indian Government to curtail the growth of transnational organized crime, including trafficking in persons, inter-alia, including ratification of United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others as also United Nations Convention on Transnational Organised Crime (UNCTOC).

The solicitor general underlined that the commitment to address the problem of trafficking in human beings by the Government of India is reflected in various legal provisions to counter-trafficking provisions, as enshrined in the Indian Constitution as well as the Indian Penal Code and Legislations like Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956, etc.

He also shared various programmes and schemes initiated by the Government of India like “Ujjawala”, “SwadharGreh Scheme”, “Sakhi”, “Universalization of Women Helpline”, providing for a supportive institutional framework and mechanism for addressing concerns of women affected by violence.

Chief law officers from the SCO Member States who participated in the meeting included the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nurdauletov G D, Procurator General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate of the People's Republic of China Zhang Jun, First Deputy Prosecutor General of the Kyrgyz Republic Moldokmatov Abai.

Attorney General of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Amir Rehman, Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation Krasnov I V, Prosecutor General of the Republic of Tajikistan Rahmon Yusuf Ahmadzod, and Prosecutor General of the Republic of Uzbekistan Yuldashev NT also participated in the meeting.

The next (20th) meeting of the Prosecutors General of the SCO Member States will be held in the Republic of Kazakhstan in 2022.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)