Three men from remote villages of Tiruvannamalai district were rescued from sugarcane fields in Karnataka and brought back to their hometown on Sunday.

Revenue officials said that rescued persons were identified as K. Murugan, 28, a resident of Agarampallipattu village; John Bosco, 40, a resident of Navampattu village, and K. Anbalagan, 58.

“Based on an alert, revenue officials in Karnataka conducted searches at the farm land where they found the rescued persons, who were working for the past few years,” said a revenue officer.

Initial inquiry revealed that the rescued persons were roped in by agents to work on sugarcane farms in remote villages of Karnataka. They were given ₹10,000-15,000 as advance money before they were sent to the farmland to work in inhuman conditions.

Revenue officials said that the rescued persons were forced to stay in small huts without proper access to drinking water and without toilet facilities. They were reportedly made to work for more than 15 hours a day. The rescued workers told revenue officials that the farm 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, revenue officials said.

Based on alert, revenue officials in Karnataka inspected the farmland and rescued the workers. They informed revenue officials in Vellore about the incident. Subsequently, Tiruvannamalai Collector Vandana Garg ordered officials to ensure safe return of rescued persons.

The rescued persons were provided with release certificates signed by the RDO in Tiruvannamalai. The release certificate enables the rescued workers to receive financial aid and access government schemes meant for bonded labourers, officials said.