Review SOP on missing children, OSCPCR tells Odisha Police chief

The Commission recommended that all the police stations should take up cases of missing children on a priority basis and work out case specific strategies to track and rescue the minors.
For representational purposes (Express Illustrations)
For representational purposes (Express Illustrations)

BHUBANESWAR:  Odisha State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (OSCPCR) has recommended the State Police to review and rework the standard operating procedure (SOP) issued by the Crime Branch (CB) for tracing of missing children. 

In a letter to DGP Abhay on Wednesday, OSCPCR Chairperson Sandhyabati Pradhan said, “The SOP can be more holistic to cover preventive measures, proactive steps for gathering information, registering FIRs and building convergence with other schemes and departments for rehabilitation of the rescued children.”

The Commission also suggested enhancing coordination among the panchayat level child protection committees formed as per the Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) and Ama Police Samiti to create awareness on the safety and security of the children.

“In the last few months, many children have been traced and rescued. However, there is a need to continue the spirit and also bring some changes in the approaches to make our efforts more effective and fruitful,” said Pradhan.

The Commission recommended that all the police stations should take up cases of missing children on a priority basis and work out case specific strategies to track and rescue the minors.

The police should review the progress of such matters on a monthly basis, register all the missing children cases on the national portal TrackChild, and initiate a process of developing a State-level strategy to ensure safety and security of the children by involving different stakeholders including the civil societies, the panel suggested.

It expects a compliance in this regard within 15 days of receiving the letter. In February 2020, the Crime Branch had issued the SOP on missing persons. The SOP had listed immediate steps to be taken after initiation of an enquiry or investigation. 

However, much of it was not followed in Nayagarh minor girl’s alleged rape and murder case where the district police is at the receiving end not only for shoddy investigation but putting the family into inconvenience.

The victim’s parents have alleged that the police harassed them for four months after their five-year-old daughter’s body was recovered instead of nabbing the accused.

Expressing serious concern over the matter, the DGP had also issued a letter to all the district SPs, Twin City DCPs and SPs of Cuttack and Rourkela Railways last month. According to the National Tracking System for Missing Children, there are 12,200 children missing from the State till date. 

Awareness on child rights

A two-day Sishu Sampark Yatra will be organised in city slums to create awareness on child rights. The programme will be held at Sikhar Chandi and Niladri Vihar slums on Friday and at Adibasigaon near Salia Sahi and Patharabandha slum on Monday.

It will be organised by OSCPCR in association with ActionAid, Centre for Sustainable Use of Natural and Social Resources (CSNR) and Centre for Child and Women Development (CCWD).

“During the event, volunteers will interact with the children and their parents to know their grievances,” said a senior official of OSCPCR.

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