Mumbai: The Central Railway's Railway Protection Force (RPF) successfully reunited 1,064 children from Maharashtra (740 boys and 359 girls) with their families through ‘Operation Nanhe Farishte' from April to November this year. RPF personnel found these kids wandering, begging or engaged in child labour at multiple railway stations in the state over the past few months.
As per officials, most of these children who have been reunited with their parents hail from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh. Of the 1,064 kids rescued, 312 children were found from the Mumbai division, 313 from the Bhusawal division, 210 from the Pune division, 154 from the Nagpur division, and 75 from the Solapur division in Maharashtra.
Data from the Central Railway revealed that of the 56 children rescued in April, 29 were boys and 27 girls. In May, 93 children were handed over to their parents, including 61 boys and 32 girls. In June, 95 children were rescued, including 55 boys and 40 girls. The number of children rescued in July was 202 including 137 boys and 65 girls.
Moving on to August, as many as 141 children were handed over to their parents, including 94 boys and 44 girls. In September and October, 160 and 114 children were rescued respectively. Of the 160 rescued in October, 125 were boys and 35 girls while among the 11 rescued in October, 85 were boys and 29 girls.
The railway administration, speaking on the issue said that most of the kids run away from their families due to domestic disputes among others. An official, seeking anonymity said, "Most of these children come from financially backward classes. They dream of living a better life in Mumbai and fall for its glamour and comfort. When the RPF personnel find them, they counsel them and hand them over to their parents. Several parents have expressed gratitude to the railway personnel after being reunited with their children."
Special Case:
While patrolling at Khandwa station on November 7, RPF officers Ishwar Chand Jat and R K Tripathi spotted a young boy on platform 4/5. Upon counselling, they discovered the child, Sumit, had a mobile number tattooed on his right arm.
When the officers dialled the number, Sumit's brother received the call and said that Sumit suffers from amnesia. With help from ChildLine representatives, Sumit was then placed under Navjeevan Balgrih's care, till his brother arrived.
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