Grateful To Telangana Police, 3,178 Children Smile Again

Hyderabad: As many as 3,178 children including 277 girls were rescued by the Telangana police during Operation Smile-VII carried out across the State from January 1.

Of the total 3,178 rescued children, 2,373 were from Telangana while 805 were from other States. The police reunited 2,188 children with their parents and 990 children were sent to the rescue homes. As many 344 children were enrolled in Darpan application and 508 children were compared with the missing children during the operation smile.

In all, 442 people were arrested after registering 380 cases under various Sections of laws including Child Labour Act, Bonded Labour Act and Juvenile Justice Act.

As per guidelines of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the police conducted the month-long operation in coordination with the various government departments. Around 110 Sub-Divisional Level Rescue Operation teams were formed in the State to rescue the children.

Around 291 child missing cases were under still investigation in the State. During the operation smile, 12 cases of children missing were detected. At Charminar, a two-and-a-half years-old girl went missing in October 10, 2005.

The parents hailing from Kurnool district came to visit the Charminar with their three children when the girl went missing. They searched for the girl at the Charminar and its surroundings but in vain. The family later lodged a complaint at the Hussainialam police station.

During the operation smile, a police team from Cyberabad visited a home in Miyapur and enquired the details of the inmates. Later, after comparing the details of one of the inmate with the missing cases registered in 2005, the police succeeded in identifying the girl belonging to Kurnool district.

In another case, a teenager went missing from his house at Shantinagar in Nalgonda district after his father asked him to study properly. As the teenager gave his contact number to his school friends, the police examined the call data records and traced the boy, who was working in a fast food centre in Hyderabad. The police handed over the girl and teenager to their parents.

Director-General of Police M Mahendar Reddy appreciated the police for their efforts in rescuing the children and handing them over to their parents. Around 17,224 child missing cases were booked since 2014 to 2020 in the State. Of them, 12,807 children were traced, he added.

388 children saved in city

The Hyderabad City Police have rescued 388 children, including forty-four girls, during the Operation Smile – VII in January. The children were rescued from bonded labour, begging and other work in shops across the city in January.

The operation was conducted by 17 teams, which were assisted by the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, City Crime Records Bureau and other wings of the police. The children were also traced with the help of the ‘Darpan’ missing child tracing portal.

According to the police, out of the 388 children rescued, 344 were boys and 44 were girls. Among them, 55 including 27 girls were rescued from begging. A total of 61 cases were booked against those who employed children. The rescue operation was conducted at places including Kachiguda, Begumpet, Moghalpura, Kanchanbagh, Malakpet and Langar Houz. Officials said these children belonged to various States including Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

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