KOCHI: Where have all these children disappeared? As parents continue to rue the fate of their children, the authorities are clueless on the 66 children reported missing from Kochi city in the last one year.In a startling finding, the Childline has come out with the latest report that the children were reported missing from Kochi between April 2010 and March 2011.The report indicates that incidents of missing children are on the rise in the city and the authorities are yet to ascertain whether the children are being trafficked by rackets as a labour force in other parts of the country.Childline district coordinator Antony Jinoy said the agency prepared the report based on the field reports and the distress calls received from the parents."In many cases, the children have left home on their own. While a few have been traced by the police and the railway police, the rest are still to be traced. As per the report, the maximum number of missing children was reported in January 2011," he said.He said the agency had received a total of 34 calls from distressed parents seeking help between April 2010 and March 2011."Preliminary reports point out that the majority of the children hailed from families who have moved to the city from Tamil Nadu and other North Indian states as migrant labourers," he said. A senior police officer said the process was on to set up a dedicated anti-human trafficking unit in the city to check the rising incidents of child trafficking. The official said that a squad comprising two women and two men police officials will be formed to spruce up the activities of the anti-human trafficking unit."The squad will be given powers to check premises for suspected child labour and human trafficking activities. The Assistant Commissioner of District Crime Records Bureau will coordinate the activities of the squad," the official said.Director General of Police (DGP) Jacob Punnoose has issued a circular on the setting up of three anti-human trafficking units in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode.According to it, a District Nodal Officer shall be responsible for coordination with the Social Welfare Department, Orphanage Control Board, Tribal Welfare Department, Child Welfare Committees, Juvenile Justice Boards, Childline, Education Department and Forest Department as and when necessary to check human trafficking.
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