NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police successfully rescued 21 children, including two girls, working in different shops at Sadar Bazar in Delhi Cantonment today. According to officials, this operation, aimed at combating child labour, involves the Delhi Cantonment Tehsildar, a non-governmental organization (NGO), the labour department, and the local police.
“A rescue operation was carried out on October 8 by Tehsildar Delhi Cantonment in Sadar Bazar with the help of NGOs, labour department and local police and a total of 21 children were rescued from different shops in Sadar Bazar,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (southwest) Surendra Choudhary said.
Nineteen children are sent to Mukti Ashram Burari, while the two girls are relocated to Rainbow Girls Home at Kashmiri Gate. The police registered a case at the Delhi Cantonment Police Station under Sections 74 and 79 of the Juvenile Justice Act and Sections 3 and 14 of the Child Labour Act.
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In a similar operation on October 3, the Vidisha Welfare Social Organisation (VWSO) and Government Railway Police (GRP) rescued 14 minors from child labour. During a routine check on the Ahmedabad Express train at Ganjbasoda railway station, GRP personnel discover 10 children in suspicious conditions, prompting the involvement of the VWSO team.
Deepa Sharma from VWSO explains, “While checking in the train, the Ganjbasoda RPF team found some children in suspicious condition. After getting information from the RPF team, the VWSO team reached Ganjbasoda and brought the children to Vidisha.”
“During counselling, it was revealed that the children were being taken from Bihar to Ahmedabad for child labour. 10 children were rescued in Vidisha while the remaining 4 children could not be rescued because the train had left. Then our team rescued 4 children in Bhopal”, added Deepa Sharma.
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In August 2024, a similar inspection in northeast Delhi led to the rescue of 18 children aged 11 to 17 working in a jute bag manufacturing factory. The operation, conducted by the Delhi Police, the Revenue Department, and an NGO, followed a tip-off about child labour in the area. The children, who hail from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Uttarakhand, were found employed under hazardous conditions.