In their bid to re-unite missing children with their families, Delhi Police have rescued around 333 children in the current year.

According to Delhi Police records, “From 1st January to till date, Anti Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) of  the Crime Branch has rescued 333 children so far from bus stands and railway stations in the national Capital in its ongoing initiative called ‘Operation MILAP’.

“Apart from rescuing children, the AHTU has recovered and rescued 57 kidnapped, missing persons, while investigating cases registered in Delhi this year,” said the Additional CP adding that working in over-drive, during the last week itself, the AHTU has recovered 15 persons who had been reported missing or kidnapped in city.

 According to Rajiv Ranjan, Additional Commissioner of Police, Crime Branch, AHTU of Crime Branch have made its teams which develops information, rescues the trafficked or kidnapped person, arrests the kidnapper(s) and takes necessary legal action in all cases of Human Trafficking, kidnapping, abduction registered in Delhi.

 Operation MILAP

 This scheme is run by the AHTU of the Crime Branch. Under this scheme, AHTU carries out special drive to periodically check all the Bus Stands, Railway Stations, and other places in Delhi to look for unattended and stray children. Police said that due to this scheme AHTU has rescued 333 children so far from Bus Stands and Railway Stations in Delhi. 

“Extensive help by NGOs is taken in the drive. The rescued children are counselled and also given requisite medical attention where ever so required.

The AHTU also visits Children Homes across the city and makes an effort to track down the parents of children who may be lodged in these Children Homes but are unable to reveal much about their actual families or home addresses,” said the Additional CP.

Investigation of cases and recovery of missing persons apart from rescuing children, the AHTU in 2019 till date has recovered 57 kidnapped, abducted, missing persons, while investigating cases registered in Delhi.

“Out of these rescued or recovered persons, 14 persons are minors. However, 37 persons are women. In most cases of these cases the police team had to conduct numerous raids outside Delhi, all over the country, to track and recover the missing or kidnapped person,” said the Additional CP.

From January 1, 2019, around cases of kidnapping and abduction were transferred to AHTU Crime Branch from the local police for further investigation.

It is pertinent to mention here, that 19 out of these 20 cases were transferred to the AHTU, pursuant to the orders of the Delhi High Court. In almost all of these cases, the Delhi High Court monitors the progress of the investigation through Status Reports from time to time.

“The success rate of recovery of kidnapped, abducted and missing persons by the AHTU is appreciably high and a fact that has been lauded by the High Court in open Court and mentioned in the Court orders, on more than one occasion,” said the Additional CP.

What AHTU says!

AHTU Crime Branch has been instrumental in tracking down a large number of kidnapped, abducted and missing persons in Delhi, most of whom are minors and girls.

“A large percentage of the city population is either floating or migrant, which makes the work of AHTU more challenging.

However, the AHTU Crime Branch, time and again has shown that, it is prepared to meet all the challenges head on and that often, hard work and smiling faces, of the family members of recovered / rescued children, are their own reward,” said the Additional CP.