Railway police at the Secunderabad Railway station have rescued seven children from the clutches of a middleman who brought them from Jharkhand to engage them as child labour at a workshop.
The children, aged between 13 and 17 years, were found moving under suspicious conditions on Platform No. 3 on Tuesday. Volunteers of SWATI, an NGO, with the help of railway police, approached them and questioned. They were informed that one Mehaboob Ansari had brokered a deal with their parents for payment of Rs 4,000 per month and to engage them as workers at Lingam Furniture shop in Medchal.
All the seven — Mohammed Izaria, Mohammed Julfukar Ansari, Md Gulraj Ansari, Md Najur-ul-Ansari, Md Nabab Anasari, Md Kasim Ansari from Dhumker district in Jharkhand and Wakeel Kumar from Samastipur district in Bihar — were shifted to Boys Hostel and cases were booked against Md Anasari under Sec 370. 374 and Sec 3 and 4 of Child Labour Act.
Railway Police superintendent M Kantha Rao said that on previous occasion also some children were brought from Jharkhand and Bihar for engaging them as workers in workshops and factories. Those kids were rescued and stern action was taken against those who brought them. ‘’Criminal Cases were registered against them and they were sent to jail. Child labour is a crime and parents should understand it before sending their children to other states to work as child labour. We will act tough against any engaging in child labour,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, the railway police also rescued ten other children who ran away from their respective homes for petty reasons and came to the Secunderabad railway station, with the help of NGOs. They too were shifted to the Government Boy’s Welfare Hostel and their parents were informed.