The Railway Protection Force (RPF) has rescued atleast 229 children from the railways stations across the city in the year 2020. Most of these children have been sent to their respective homes while some have been handed over to NGOs working for children, said an official.
According to the RPF officials, atleast 80% of such children come to the city without informing their families, due to some fight, or some family issues, or in search of better life or glamour. However, after failing to make a mark in the city and with nowhere to go, they keep loitering near the railway stations. These children are then forced to do odd jobs. In some instances these children also faces atrocities and become victims of human trafficking gangs or get used as beggars.
Some children really get lost from their parents and relatives and accidentally come to the city, but their count is marginal, said officials.
From January till November last year, the RPF has rescued atleast 229 children from the railways station premises across the city, which include 138 boys and 91 girls. As a part of its special drive, the RPF has successfully reunited over 15,000 children with their families since 2016.
In the cases when the authorities failed to locate their parents, the custody of such children have been given to NGO's working in this field, while those without any relatives and those who got addicted have been sent to children homes.
In the cases where children themselves leave their houses and do not want to return, the RPF staff has been trained to take such children in confidence instead. In this way the officials could connect with the children easily and understand their problems. In such cases children also share their true details with them that helps cops to trace their parents. In such cases the officials also counsel their parents.
