Over 7,000 children rescued in July under Operation Muskaan

Hyderabad: As many as 7,678 children, including over 6,000 engaged in child labour, were rescued in Telangana during July under ‘Operation Muskaan’-XI, a nationwide initiative by the Ministry of Home Affairs, officials said on Friday.

Several places across the state including railway and bus stations, religious sites, brick kilns, mechanic shops, constructions sites, tea stalls were mapped and a total of 7,678 children (7149 boys and 529 girls) from 12 states and including four from Nepal were rescued, Additional Director General of Police (Women Safety Wing) Charu Sinha said in a release.

As many as 1,713 FIRs were registered and 1,718 accused were arrested in the operation, police said, adding 6,593 children were reunited with families while 1,049 were admitted to rescue homes.

‘Operation Muskaan’-XI reinforced Telangana Police‘s commitment to eradicating child trafficking and bonded labour through sustained, multi-agency coordination, the release said.