Imagine losing your mother to save someone else’s daughter. That is just one of the incredibly tough decisions Rangu Souriya has made in her decades-long journey of rescuing trafficked girls.
Rangu grew up in the tea gardens of Mirik, where girls vanished and villagers blamed victims with cruel rumours. When a 13-year-old girl was abducted while plucking tea leaves, young Rangu risked everything to track her all the way to Delhi and bring her home.
At just 23, she founded Kanchanjungha Uddhar Kendra (KUK) in Siliguri — a sanctuary that shelters abandoned survivors and is named after a mountain peak that never melts, a symbol of her relentless spirit.
In 2008, with her mother on her deathbed, Rangu faced an impossible choice — a group of girls was about to be trafficked into a red-light district, and her mother’s last wish was clear: “Go save them.”
She did. But by the time she returned, her mother was gone. That heartbreaking moment ignited a fire that would not let her stop.
Since then, Rangu has rescued over 10,000 girls, walking through forests at midnight and battling traffickers head-on. Her courage has taken her to courtrooms where she has faced dangerous criminals while testifying for justice.
Rangu has never married, has no savings, and has never sought fame. Her true wealth is the lives she has saved and the hope she has restored to those the world forgot.
Her work is dangerous, her path lonely, but her will unbreakable. “They want me dead, they want me silenced. But I will not stop,” says the braveheart, who has no plans of stopping until she has rescued the hundreds of girls still trapped in darkness.
India’s battle against human trafficking is far from over, but Rangu’s courage lights the way. Her story reminds us that one person’s resolve can shatter chains and open doors. Hats off to her!
Rangu Souriya has over 20 awards, including the Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Award and recognition as one of India’s Top 100 Women Achievers. Yet she says, “I do not need awards; what I really need is your support to keep saving and sheltering these girls.”