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Imagine reuniting with someone who you feared was lost. Prakasam’s mother, Sundari experienced this on 26 July, when she was brought face to face with her eldest son, who had been missing from home for 23 years.
Prakasam had run away from home at 16 years old after a quarrel with his brother and eventually became trapped in forced labour at a buffalo farm for 15 years. Today, 39-year-old Prakasam is safe, reunited with his mother and brother, after local authorities helped him return home.
At this stage, the events that led him to becoming a victim of bonded labour after leaving his home are unclear – as we journey with Prakasam while he settles well into freedom, we will continue to support him as more details emerge.
Prakasam was forced to work in the buffalo farm for about 15 years without any wages. Media reports indicate that he was forced to clean the sheds, collect dung and attend to the needs of about 24 cattle. The farm owner used iron chains to bind his legs to an iron cot to prevent him from leaving. He also did not permit Prakasam to care for himself at all. His clothes were covered in layers of dust and there were bits of hay caught in his hair.
A local NGO found Prakasam working in deplorable conditions and helped bring him out on July 16, 2022. One of them remarked, “Even the cattle were kept cleaner than him… He was chained like an animal.”
Though the NGO brought Prakasam out of the farm, they did not engage the police to pursue legal action against the offender as their focus was rehabilitation. They placed Prakasam at a shelter home since they were unable to trace his family.
Years of isolation and exploitation had affected Prakasam so drastically that he did not utter more than one-word responses for months after the rescue. He was unable to recall his family members’ names. For six months, Prakasam spoke little. After receiving treatment at a medical centre, he eventually spoke more.
In the years that followed, a retired government official visited the shelter home to provide counselling support. He was deeply moved by Prakasam’s situation and so he visited him regularly to help him recollect memories that would help track his family. Through his connections, he looped in a local journalist to connect with Prakasam in his mother tongue. He hoped that this would create a sense of safety and comfort that would kindle memories from his childhood.
After patient and consistent interactions, Prakasam finally shared the names of his parents, brother and his native village.
The journalist then went to the village to find Prakasam’s family, but they were not there. The people in the village said that his family had moved away and shared their address with him.
At last, with a clear address, the journalist finally found Prakasam’s mother, Sundari.
When he met her, he asked her if her son had gone missing. She replied, “Yes! I searched for him everywhere….and then lost hope.” The journalist then made a video call to Prakasam and instantly the mother recognised him. It was the first time in over two decades that they got to see one another!
Though the mother and brother immediately recognised Prakasam, local authorities and the NGO asked to provide formal documentation to prove that they are kin. Prakasam’s mother submitted a petition to a district government official to help bring her son back home because she had no formal document to prove that they are family.
For people who are vulnerable, many do not possess formal documentation.
In response, the official asked the district administration to help gather documents from schools where Prakasam had studied and any other identification possible. He also assured Prakasam’s mother of the government’s support.
The official also requested that legal proceedings be initiated under bonded labour laws so that Prakasam can benefit from the government’s rehabilitation support. This includes a Release Certificate (a formal document that cancels debt bonds and ties with his former employer – read more here), rehabilitation assistance and protection.
Thanks to the excellent collaboration between government officials, NGOs (including IJM) and journalists, the mother and son were finally reunited on 28 July 2026. As soon as the mother saw her son, she broke into tears.
Currently authorities and NGOs are continuing to work together to help Prakasam receive his Release Certificate and file a First Information Report against the owner. They are also working to bring Prakasam and his mother back home to Coimbatore from Punjab. Authorities have booked their flight travel, accommodation, local transport and food to receive the mother and son as they return to their home.
A member of our team in South Asia reflected, “This story is a powerful reminder of the devastating reality of trafficking and bonded labour, but also of the persistence of hope, the dedication of those who pursue justice, and the joy that comes when families are finally reunited.”
