21 kids rescued in crackdown on child trafficking
Anshita Mehra
New Delhi, June 8
As many as 21 children, including 14 girls, were rescued from different parts of the Capital on Saturday as part of an operation led by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in coordination with Delhi Police and NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA).
Were promised better life
- The kids, aged between 8 and 17 years, were brought to Delhi with promises of education and better life
- In the Shakurpur area, the authorities faced resistance, including a locked main gate that required special permission from the L-G to break open
- In this area alone, 13 children were rescued, with the remaining children found in Rajouri Garden (5) and Nihal Vihar (3)
- The rescued children, who appeared scared, hungry, sleep deprived and confused, were brought before the Child Welfare Committee
- They hail from various states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh
The joint operation, targeting child trafficking networks, conducted raids at 10 locations across North West and West Delhi.
The children, aged between 8 and 17 years, were brought to Delhi by placement agencies with promises of education and a better life. Instead, they were subjected to exploitation and harsh conditions. The raids not only freed the children but also uncovered records of thousands of other trafficked children, alongside Rs 10.5 lakh in cash and gold jewellery.
A particularly challenging rescue took place in the Shakurpur area, where the authorities faced resistance, including a locked main gate that required special permission from the L-G to break open. In this area alone, 13 children were rescued, with the remaining children found in Rajouri Garden (5) and Nihal Vihar (3).
The rescued children, who appeared scared, hungry, sleep deprived and confused, were brought before the Child Welfare Committee. They hail from various states, including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh.
Bachpan Bachao Andolan Director Manish Sharma said, “Today’s raid once again brings forth the urgent need for stringent regulations and vigilant enforcement to protect vulnerable children from exploitation and trafficking. It is imperative to regulate placement agencies because they are becoming a dangerous tool in the hands of traffickers.”
He added, “The traffickers often approach marginalised families in far-flung states and make tall promises about the future of these children or lure the parents with a large sum of money. There is a vicious cycle of demand and supply for child labour in the country. It is everyone’s responsibility to end child labour and trafficking, and we will continue raising the alarm and supporting the authorities in such rescue missions and drives.”
The NCPCR, alongside the Labour Department, District Child Protection Unit (DCPU), Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) and BBA, conducted the raids, demonstrating a unified front against the exploitation of children.
