325 child labourers rescued under 'Operation Smile'

As many as 325 child labourers have been rescued as part of 'Operation Smile' in Hyderabad, Commissioner of Police Anjani Kumar said on Monday.

Operation Smile was launched on January 1 this year to trace missing children. The month-long programme aims to rescue child labourers, children engaged in begging for alms and so on.

Speaking to media, Kumar said: "In Hyderabad city, 17 teams were constituted. So far, 325 children have been rescued including 11 girls. Of these, 53 children have been admitted in rescue homes while 272 have been handed over to their parents. 7 of the rescued children were below the age of 10, 38 were 11-14 years old while 280 children were 14-18 years old."

During the operation, Kumar said 14 cases were booked against various establishments for engaging child labourers. Also, a fine of Rs. 6,75,365 was imposed on establishments for various violations. The rescued children were found working in different types of establishments and factories like those engaged in making bags, bangles, biscuits, electrical items, and in welding shops, to name a few.

Besides rescuing children belonging to Hyderabad and other parts of Telangana, 100 children belonging to states like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and even Nepal were rescued during this operation, Kumar noted.