Telangana police rescue 3,076 children in record-breaking Operation Muskan-X
Hyderabad: The Telangana police have successfully rescued 3,076 children, including 644 by the Cyberabad police teams, during the “Operation Muskan-X” program conducted from July 1 to July 31, 2024. Spearheaded by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), this annual initiative aims to trace and rescue missing and trafficked children and rehabilitate them through collaborative efforts with multiple stakeholders.
The operation has set new benchmarks with an impressive 88% success rate in tracing missing persons and 87% for children, surpassing the national average of 53%. The state’s in-house Facial Recognition Application, DARPAN, is the key to this achievement. This technology matches photographs of missing children uploaded on the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) with images of found or recovered children admitted to Child Care Institutions (CCIs) or shelter homes. A national version of this application is now being adopted to streamline the identification of traced persons.
Teams conducted a thorough analysis of past crimes and identified vulnerable pockets, including industrial units, brick kilns, and areas with illegal child employment. This meticulous approach led to rescues in various locations such as railway stations, bus stations, religious places, traffic junctions, mechanic shops, brick industries, large construction sites, shops, tea stalls, and footpaths.
Detailed rescue statistics for 2024:
• Total children rescued: 3,076 (Boys – 2,772, Girls – 304)
• Children from other states/countries (Nepal: 934, Boys – 894, Girls – 40)
• Street children: 47 (Boys – 44, Girls – 3)
• Children rescued from begging: 115 (Boys – 82, Girls – 33)
• Children rescued from child labor: 2,510 (Boys – 2,307, Girls – 203)
• Children rescued from brick kilns: 33 (Boys – 29, Girls – 4)
• Children rescued from other industries/employments: 371 (Boys – 310, Girls – 61)
• Other child labor: 2,106 (Boys – 1,968, Girls – 138)
In addition to these efforts, 495 children were enrolled in the DARPAN Application, with 4,262 children compared against the missing children database during the operation. The police registered 637 FIRs involving 639 accused, all arrested on the same day. A total of 767 children were rescued from these cases.
Telangana has been recognised for its comprehensive approach to rescue and rehabilitation, maintaining a 100% compliance rate for issuing Release Certificates and offering a substantial compensation package of Rs. 20,000 per rescued child. The state has rescued nearly 59,000 children over the past nine years, highlighting a steadfast commitment to addressing child trafficking and labor issues.
Rehabilitation data for 2024:
• Children reunited with parents/guardians: 2,856 (Boys – 2,582, Girls – 274)
• Children admitted to rescue homes: 220 (Boys – 190, Girls – 30)
• Children admitted to schools: 281 (Boys – 255, Girls – 27)
• Dropout children identified and referred to Child Welfare Committees (CWCs- 1,530) (Boys – 1,403, Girls – 127)
• Back wages facilitated: Rs. 12,50,389
In 2023, Telangana led the nation in rescue efforts, and in 2024, the state continued its upward trajectory with an additional 459 children rescued compared to the previous year.
Shikha Goel, ADGP of the Women Safety Wing, which serves as the nodal agency for 120 Sub-Divisional Police Teams, supervised the operation. A total of 676 police personnel were deployed across the state for this operation.
The Women’s Safety Wing achieved a significant milestone by locating a boy missing since 2014, found in Uttar Pradesh on July 12, 2024, due to the dedicated efforts of the Additional Director General of Police, CID, Women’s Safety Wing.
Telangana’s Women Safety Wing also manages a dedicated Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) and maintains powerful partnerships with NGOs to enhance field intelligence, officer training, and community awareness. This year, 527 training sessions were completed, reaching 27,000 citizens in hotspots across the state.
