A total of 45 missing children has been traced and rescued in Haridwar district between July 1 and 31 during the second phase of Operation Smile launched by state police.
It is pertinent to mention that 128 missing children were rescued under the same operation in January during its first phase. As per the data available with District Crime Record Bureau, 85 children are still missing.
Notably, enthused by the resounding success of the first phase of Operation Smile launched in January, the second phase was launched in July at the behest of director general of police (DGP) Uttarakhand.
It is a success story too, claimed the district police.
During the operation launched in July, 19 out of 45 children were handed over to their respective families while 26 others were sent to the children protection center based in the district.
Data taken from all the 19 police stations lying in the district was compiled by District Crime Record Bureau (DCRB). As per the recorded complaints, total 146 children were found missing from the district Haridwar.
Seven teams, comprising one technical in – charge, members of legal advisory committee, juvenile court and shelter homes, were formed and tasked to search and rescue the children who had gone missing from various places like bus stands, railway stations, temples, hotels, dhabas and industries located in the SIIDCUl and other Industrial areas of the district.
Rajesh Bhatt, CO, City, was the nodal officer of the operation. Things progressed apace as SSP, SP City and SP Rural kept on providing inputs from time to time through workshops. liaising with the police officers from other states like Delhi, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh was done by SI Harpal Singh.
As per the official data available with DCRB, missing reports of total 265 children were registered across the district over the past ten years. Out of them, 180 missing children have been rescued and handed over to their respective families so far. Till date 85 children are still missing with their parents still awaiting their return.
Interestingly, 63 children who had gone missing from the other states and other districts with no missing report being lodged with the police stations based in Haridwar district were recovered during the operation and handed over to their respective families through respective state police departments in January.
The nodal officer further said though the operation was meant for one month the district police are continuously working to rescue such children by way of routine policing. “The spirit would not flag as we remain focused on our duty to reunite the missing children with their anxiously waiting parents,” he added.