Rights body asks state bhavans to set up held desks for kids

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has asked all states to set up help desks in their bhavans in Delhi to help rehabilitate victims of child trafficking rescued from the national capital, the rights body said today.
The NCPCR is framing guidelines for children rescued from the capital and the NCR region to create a post-rescue standard operating procedure which would help them reunite with their families.
NCPCR deliberated at a meeting here on measures that could be taken with nine state resident commissioners - of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Assam, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

It was also attended by child welfare committees from eight states, Childline, a helpline for children, and NGOs working on anti-trafficking issues.
"I request all state bhavans to open a help desk for such victims and their families, and all states should appoint nodal officers for this purpose," NCPCR Chairperson Stuti Kacker said.
NCPCR is also looking at how rescued children can be sent back home and in the event of a death, how a body can transported to their hometown.

It also plans to compile a resource directory with the contact details of every state's child protection and anti- trafficking units, child welfare committees as well as NGOs concerned.

"This is for the first time that such a meeting was held with state bhavans as they are an important aspect of the coordination needed in the post-rescue scenario for these children," said Supreme Court advocate Ravikant, who also attended the meeting.
Ravikant, who runs Shakti Vahini, an anti-trafficking non-profit group, said it was essential that Delhi, being a major hub of trafficking, look into coordination.
"After their rescue, these children need translators and a safe place to stay which the bhavans can provide. Also officials from the states who come to take the victims back need the support of the bhavans," said Ravikant.

The meeting also discussed the help that could be given to victims' families who come to Delhi in search of missing children. They and police escorts from the states could be provided with train tickets and residential accommodation, it was suggested.
NCPCR said the guidelines would be finalised soon.
According to the 2015 National Crime Records Bureau data, there has been a 73 per cent increase in the registration of cases against traffickers in Delhi. The figure has gone up to 156 cases registered from 23 a year ago. As many as 207 girls were rescued by the police and other agencies in 2015, compared to 32 in 2014.

About 60 per cent of the victims were in the age group of 12-16 years and 83.3 per cent of the traffickers were known to the victim.
Most of the victims rescued were trafficked from West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha.