Pondy case is just one more; 172 Indian children go missing every day

Hundreds of Puducherry residents took part in road blockades and protests earlier this week, shocked by the alleged abduction, sexual attack and brutal murder of a nine-year-old girl. The protesters were not only showing solidarity but also demanding justice for the child, whose decomposed body was found in a drain near her house.

She was allegedly abducted and sexually assaulted by two men, and her body was identified on the third day of her disappearance.

Her rape and murder have once again brought to the surface the increasing incidents of disappearance and trafficking of girl children across states. Also in focus is police ineptitude and lethargy – the lack of urgency in investigation in the critical first 24 hours once a missing complaint is lodged.

Poor implementation

Figures from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) show a sharp increase in the number of missing children every year in India. The Union Home Ministry launched the Operation Muskaan project in 2017 to address the issue of missing children, but experts say it has not been implemented effectively by enforcement agencies.

According to 2022 NCRB statistics, close to 172 children go missing every day across the country. Among the missing children, the girls outnumber the boys significantly.

In 2022, out of a total of 83,350 missing children, 62,946 were girls, indicating that over 75 per cent of missing children were girls, against 65 per cent in 2016. The study also shows the problem is highly prevalent in Madhya Pradesh (11,607 missing children in 2021) and West Bengal (9,996), among other states.

The golden hours

In the recent Puducherry tragedy, the parents of the girl filed a complaint within two hours of her disappearance. The case acquired traction only after the child's corpse was found in a neighbourhood drain.

P Manorama, former chairperson of the Child Welfare Committee, points out that children who get abducted are typically held captive in the same city for the first 24 hours. This has been gleaned from cases where the children have been successfully traced.

“Abduction and trafficking of children should be dealt with on priority," Manorama told The Federal. "The rising trend of missing children, particularly girls, indicates a lack of safety and security in our country. In several cases, if the investigation is carried out immediately after the complaint, there are chances of recovering the children without exposure to abuse or assault, physically and sexually."

Delays can be excruciating, both for the parents and the children. Manorama cited a case where a girl from West Bengal was trafficked when she was seven years old and was reunited with her family after seven years.

New names, poor results

“Every hour counts from the time of the complaint filed on the incident. The Union government came up with Operation Muskaan, Track the Child, and many such initiatives. New names are given to programmes, funds are allocated, but the rising trend shows our enforcement has failed in many cases. Our daughters are in danger," she said.

When The Federal checked out the 'Track the missing child' website, managed by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, the contact details for officials to report missing children were not available. The entire table of contact persons remain 'not available'.

During a recent interview with The Federal, Puducherry Lt Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan admitted the failure of the police in promptly investigating the case after the girl went missing.

“Yes, there was a delay. We are horrified that the girl child was hidden close to her house and the cops recovered her corpse in the drain on the third day of the complaint. We transferred the officials immediately and will also file charges against them for their inefficiency," she told The Federal.

Pattern needs study

However, child rights activist A Devaneyan is critical of such action. He said transferring officials is not an adequate punishment in cases related to crimes against children.

“Every district should have a juvenile aid police, and they should prepare risk assessments to identify anti-social elements. In the Puducherry case, it is tough to believe the officials’ claim that they did have a special unit but failed to nab offenders," he told The Federal.

"One of the suspects was already identified and reported by the public as a drug addict in the area. The POCSO (Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences) Act says officials who failed to perform their duty to protect a child should also be inquired into and jail term or fine should be imposed based on the nature of neglect,” he said.

To the question of why girls go missing more often than boys, Devaneyan said it could be due to factors like abduction for commercial sex work. Also, girls themselves could be running away from home to escape domestic violence, abuse, and neglect, he added.

(To report missing children, call 1098.)