Let’s do our bit to help cops reunite missing kids

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The Mumbai police will soon launch an initiative to reunite missing or abducted children with their families. The ‘Operation Reunited' will start on August 15, the country's 75th Independence Day, and go on till September 15, an official said recently.

To make the initiative successful, the city police have sought help from citizens to help them find missing and abducted children, he said. During the month-long exercise, the police will also look for the parents of such children and help them reunite with their families, the official said.

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The police have also appealed to people to inform them on helpline numbers 100 or 1098 about children found in suspicious condition, those begging on railway stations, bus depots and roads and those engaged in rag-picking, reports quoted the official as saying.

This is a heartening initiative and we must support this with zeal. Like the official stated, if one is concerned about a certain child doing some forced labour or begging, rag-picking with no adult in sight, call the police numbers.

It may help to try and engage the child in some conversation for information but this must be done with utmost caution and keeping an eye on safety. In the end, ordinary persons are not sleuths and are not trained in detective work. Good intentions notwithstanding, it is better to report suspicions to the police and let the experts carry on the good work. Citizens can amp up the initiative by being the eyes and ears on the ground of this laudable campaign, being willing to go and report suspicions to the police through phone and being unafraid of getting involved.

There are many crimes that are solved through alert citizen intervention, and this may be one of them. Simply exercise good sense and balance while doing so. More power to the moving reunification plan.

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