Railways ink pact with Nobel laureate Satyarthi to rescue children

As per the pact, both the organizations pledged to work together to share information, build capacity of RPF personnel and railway employees to work against human trafficking, writes Amit Agnihotri.

New Delhi:Indian Railways, which has rescued around 50,000 children since 2018, on Friday signed a pact with Nobel prize winner Kailash Satyarthi to end the menace of child trafficking on its network. The Railway Protection Force signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bachpan Bachao Andolan, run by well-known activist Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, said an official release from the railway ministry.

Earlier, Director General RPF Sanjay Chander had discussed the issue with CEO of Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation Rajni Sibal and Kailash Satyarthi on April 8, 2022. As per the pact, both the organizations pledged to work together to share information, build capacity of RPF personnel and railway employees to work against human trafficking, increase sensitization and create awareness and also help each other in identification and detection of cases of human trafficking.

“A joint action by both stakeholders under the framework of MoU will definitely enhance the scale, reach and effectiveness of “Operation Action against Human Trafficking launched by RPF across the nation,” said an official. The NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan was founded in 1979 by Kailash Satyarthi with the mission to eliminate all forms of violence against children and to create a world where all children are free, safe and healthy and receive quality education.

The BBA has been sharing information against child trafficking with the police/RPF and assisting in the arrest of traffickers/rescue of victims and has gathered domain knowledge and expertise in the field of action against child trafficking. Now the NGO aims to achieve its mission by collaborative actions, strengthening national and global policies, building capacity of duty bearers, identifying and replicating best practices in the implementation of the policy or regulatory framework relating to child protection.

The advantage here would be that BBA is a crucial stakeholder with a large network of dedicated field agents and volunteers spread across the nation. The railways are a major route for human traffickers. The RPF personnel deployed at railway stations and in trains are strategically positioned to intercept the trafficking before the victim reaches the destination and the exploitation starts, said the statement. The railways have rescued more than 1,400 minors, including 298 minor girls, from the clutches of traffickers recently, and the RPF has also set up Anti Human Trafficking Units at more than 740 locations across the country to work in coordination with other agencies.

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