BENGALURU: In response to the recent disappearance of a 12-year-old boy from Whitefield and later being found in Hyderabad, Child Rights Trust (CRT) issued an advisory urging parents to adhere to guidelines to avoid stigma and misuse of information.
When the boy went missing the parents made posters with the child’s photo and their contact numbers, sharing it across social media channels. The NGO said that despite the return, posters have been circulating on social media with the details.
CRT’s 10-point guidelines stated that parents should immediately release new posters once their children are found, without using photos of underage children and take down old ones. Additionally, children should be briefed about media coverage and reassured to boost confidence. Parents were also advised to inform their children about potential interactions with individuals who may recognize them from the posts and help them deal with the same.
The advisory emphasised the importance of discouraging any form of teasing or ridicule. It also stated that posters should include only temporary details such as phone numbers. Besides, SIM cards should also be discarded immediately after successful awareness campaign. “Both children and parents are urged to seek counselling and understand legal procedures in such situations. Parents must spend quality time with their children every day. Cases of missing children should be approached as a learning rather than a stigma,” CRT said.