"Savitribai Phule Team" Helps 186 Minor Children Reunite With Their Families

The RPF informed that they have rescued over 50 children from Bihar itself among the other 186. They added that the total rescued include 39 girls and 147 boys.

RPF Pune divisional security commissioner Uday Singh Pawar said, that when the train operations resumed last year after the restrictions, the department found many children roaming alone at platforms or outside the Pune railway station premises.

He added that many of the children claimed to have run away from their homes in search of work or after a dispute with family.

Pawar added that the special rescue squad which was formed in November last year also comprises women officers among the six RPF police staff.

Other rescued children were reportedly hailing from Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Telangana and even Nepal.

Savitri Phule Team On Identifying Unaccompanied Minors

According to a report by The Hindustan Times, the number of children coming to Pune in search of work has increased following last year’s nationwide lockdown owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pawar added in the report that the Savitri Phule team conducts random rounds of six platforms at Pune station and neighbouring areas and also travel on various trains that pass through the Pune division to look for unaccompanied minors.