Hyderabad: The Telangana Women’s Safety Wing (WSW) successfully rescued 66 child labourers and registered 35 FIRs during a month-long special campaign against child labour conducted from October 21 to November 20.
During the campaign, 37 awareness programs were organized, and four inspection reports were submitted by the Labour Department. This year alone, 819 rescued children, including those from earlier drives like Smile and Muskaan, were enrolled in schools, while 1,159 children received wages amounting to ₹54.61 lakh.
Collaboration and support
The special drive was launched in partnership with the Women Development and Child Welfare Department, State Legal Services Authority, Labour Department, and State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR). Non-governmental organizations such as Association for Voluntary Action, IJM, and My Choices Foundation also extended their support.
The campaign’s primary goal was to identify and rescue children involved in bonded labour, forced begging, and trafficking. Rescues were carried out at railway and bus stations, traffic junctions, religious sites, mechanic shops, brick kilns, construction sites, tea stalls, footpaths, and hotels.
The Cyberabad Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) played a significant role, rescuing 27 children and registering 24 FIRs, the highest in the state.
Strategic meeting and community awareness
On November 4, the WSW held an online convergence meeting with officials from 33 District Child Protection Units (DCPUs), Special Juvenile Police Units (SJPUs), and Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs). Police from the tri-commissionerates and representatives from partner NGOs also participated to discuss strategies for eliminating child labour and trafficking.
