A girl was rescued by her parents with the help of Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and Balangir police on Thursday, six years after she went missing.
The seven-year-old girl, Ritu, was separated from her mother Sukanti Sahu, wife of Satrughana Sahu of Bhoipada village in Balangir district, at Bargarh railway station in 2007. The couple made prolonged efforts in search of their daughter but in vain.
In June this year, they were informed that their daughter was staying with Jogendra Chhura of Ghagurli village in the district. Ritu was found by Jogendra’s son-in law Ramesh Mahanand at Kantabanji railway station after she got separated from her mother. Ramesh, who is a driver, brought the girl to his in-laws’ house and since then she has been living with them.
On receiving the information, Ritu’s parents visited Ghagurli and identified their daughter. They requested Ramesh and Jogendra to hand over their daughter to them but the duo refused. The couple sought the help of Bijepur police in Bargarh district and Belpara police in Balangir. Since the police did not come to their help, Ritu’s parents approached CWC of Balangir and Bargarh. Subsequently, Bargarh CWC requested its Balangir counterpart to intervene in the matter. On July 3, Balangir CWC heard both the parties and directed Jogendra and Ramesh to hand over Ritu to her parents within 15 days. She finally returned home with her parents on the intervention of Belpara police on Thursday.