Over the last 60 days, the Special Juvenile Protection Unit (SJPU) which operates under the Mumbai Police's Crime Branch rescued 32 minor children who were trafficked from other states, including six from Nepal. A total of sixteen people were arrested by the unit since January, for allegedly being involved in the trafficking business, with nine FIRs being registered at various police stations in Mumbai. The police said the children were trafficked for cheap labour work or prostitution, mostly without their parents' knowledge.
๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ณ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐: ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ป๐ถ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น
โEvery child has a different story when it comes to trafficking. In some cases, they are kidnapped by agents. There are also times when the children do not have guardians or parents to take accountability so these agents pick them up under the guise of getting them jobs for money and shelter. We have also seen cases where children are sold by the parents owing to poor financial conditions,โ a senior official said.
๐ฆ๐บ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ๐๐๐๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐น๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ฐ๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป
Most of the children were found to be working in small-scale industries in areas like Nagpada, Oshiwara, Shivaji Nagar, Govandi, Mankhurd, Agripada, Saki Naka, Worli, etc. SPJU raided these units frequently in order to rescue the children and apprehend the factory owners. In other cases, they were found to be washing utensils, cleaning the tables, kitchen, etc in small hotels, without any protection, proper wages or break hours.
Rescued children are usually sent to children's homes in Dongri and Mankhurd, after coordinating with the Child Welfare Commission (CWC). In case the child is capable enough to let the police know about their parents' identification, they are contacted and if it's a case of kidnapping, they are handed over to their family.
๐๐ป๐๐ถ-๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ณ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ด๐ถ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ,๐ญ๐ด๐ต ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ญ
According to a National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) study, the common causes of trafficking were forced marriages, child labour, domestic help and sexual exploitation. In 2021, the Anti-Human Trafficking Units registered 2,189 cases, of which the highest number were registered in three states including Maharashtra with 320 cases, as per NCRB data.
โWe try to make the case strong so the offenders get maximum punishment and sentencing for such cruel acts,โ said the official.
