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Ranchi, July 11: Eleven minors, working in abject conditions in hotels, fish and chicken shops in the state capital's Dhurwa area, were rescued today under Operation Muskan, a flagship project launched by the CID a few months ago to track the lost kids of the tribal heartland.
A team, comprising members of the CID and officers from Dhurwa police station, made the rescues during raids conducted with the help of Ranchi Child Line, which is run by NGO Chotanagpur Sanskriti Sangh.
The places that were raided included Kedar Hotel, Deepak Hotel, Sambhu and Guddu chicken shops and Nandu Choudhary Machli Dukan.
The children - aged between six and 14 years - hail from Ranchi, Chatra, Gumla and Simdega of Jharkhand besides places in Bihar and Odisha and had been working as labourers for the past two years without proper food and clothing. They were even reportedly denied the monthly salary of around Rs 1,000 that the employers had promised them.
An FIR was lodged against the employers at Dhurwa police station after recording the statements of the children, who were produced before child welfare committee (CWC) chairperson Jahan Ara.
IG CID Sampat Meena told The Telegraph, "This is a major breakthrough under Operation Muskan, the second phase of which is going on from July 1 to July 30. Till today, we have been able to rescue 118 children from both within and outside the state. "
The children narrated their plight to Ara, with one of them, aged around eight years, claiming that he was engaged in slaughtering chicken. Yesterday, the child had slaughtered around one quintal chicken.
Another 10-year-old child, employed at a hotel, said he had to work for 16 hours a day from 6am till 10 in the night.
"My fingers have been damaged because of washing utensils," he said.
Director of Chotanagpur Sanskriti Sangh Rahul Mehta said that as of now, the rescued have been put up at Bathel Shelter Home in Kanke. "The long-term plan is to trace their parents and then enrol them in schools after necessary counselling by District Child Protection Officer Seema Sharma," he said.
Sharma, on her part, said that she had already started speaking to the rescued children to know about their mental state.
"From what I have gathered till now, two of these children are from Ranchi - Lalghutwa in Ratu and North Colony in Dhurwa. So, we will first try to reunite them with their parents. We are trying our best to locate their parents, but we also have to find out why they left home in the first place. As for the remaining nine, it will take almost a week to find their parents."
Meera Mishra, a CWC member, said while they were doing their bit to counsel and rehabilitate the children, it was the job of the state labour department and police to take necessary action against the employers under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act.
"Anyone found guilty under this Act face three years' of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25,000," she said.
Speaking on Operation Muskan, IG Meena said they were also receiving information about missing children on the mail ID, [email protected].
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1150712/jsp/jharkhand/story_31036.jsp#.VafPO_mqqko
A team, comprising members of the CID and officers from Dhurwa police station, made the rescues during raids conducted with the help of Ranchi Child Line, which is run by NGO Chotanagpur Sanskriti Sangh.
The places that were raided included Kedar Hotel, Deepak Hotel, Sambhu and Guddu chicken shops and Nandu Choudhary Machli Dukan.
The children - aged between six and 14 years - hail from Ranchi, Chatra, Gumla and Simdega of Jharkhand besides places in Bihar and Odisha and had been working as labourers for the past two years without proper food and clothing. They were even reportedly denied the monthly salary of around Rs 1,000 that the employers had promised them.
An FIR was lodged against the employers at Dhurwa police station after recording the statements of the children, who were produced before child welfare committee (CWC) chairperson Jahan Ara.
IG CID Sampat Meena told The Telegraph, "This is a major breakthrough under Operation Muskan, the second phase of which is going on from July 1 to July 30. Till today, we have been able to rescue 118 children from both within and outside the state. "
The children narrated their plight to Ara, with one of them, aged around eight years, claiming that he was engaged in slaughtering chicken. Yesterday, the child had slaughtered around one quintal chicken.
Another 10-year-old child, employed at a hotel, said he had to work for 16 hours a day from 6am till 10 in the night.
"My fingers have been damaged because of washing utensils," he said.
Director of Chotanagpur Sanskriti Sangh Rahul Mehta said that as of now, the rescued have been put up at Bathel Shelter Home in Kanke. "The long-term plan is to trace their parents and then enrol them in schools after necessary counselling by District Child Protection Officer Seema Sharma," he said.
Sharma, on her part, said that she had already started speaking to the rescued children to know about their mental state.
"From what I have gathered till now, two of these children are from Ranchi - Lalghutwa in Ratu and North Colony in Dhurwa. So, we will first try to reunite them with their parents. We are trying our best to locate their parents, but we also have to find out why they left home in the first place. As for the remaining nine, it will take almost a week to find their parents."
Meera Mishra, a CWC member, said while they were doing their bit to counsel and rehabilitate the children, it was the job of the state labour department and police to take necessary action against the employers under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act.
"Anyone found guilty under this Act face three years' of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25,000," she said.
Speaking on Operation Muskan, IG Meena said they were also receiving information about missing children on the mail ID, [email protected].
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1150712/jsp/jharkhand/story_31036.jsp#.VafPO_mqqko
