KOPPAL: An 11-year-old girl from Hosalli village in Koppal district, who went missing on May 5, was safely reunited with her family after 24 days, thanks to the coordination of Child Protection Cell officials through a WhatsApp group.
The child with mental disabilities had unknowingly boarded a Mysuru-bound bus from Hosalli bus stand with her grandmother. As they waited, the grandmother dozed off, and during that time, the girl wandered into a bus and sat down. The driver and conductor assumed she was travelling with someone and did not raise an alarm.
The bus departed, and upon reaching Mysuru, when no one showed up, officials from the Mysuru Road Transport Office handed the child over to Mysuru Bala Mandir, a child care home.
The child’s father filed a missing person’s complaint with the Koppal police. During a routine monthly meeting held by the District Legal Services Authority, the Sneha department, Zilla Panchayat, Women and Child Development department, and District Children Protection officials discussed the case. Details of the child were shared in their WhatsApp group used by child protection officers across districts.
Mysuru officials shared photos of the girl who had been admitted to Bala Mandir. The child’s family immediately identified her from the images and, travelled to Mysuru on May 29 to bring her home.