Missing Persons Bureau reveal why people run away from their homes

Family members should observe if the child or youth is emotionally disturbed and is displaying behavioural changes. Representation pic

The fact that more than 2,000 missing people never return home every year means that each day around six Mumbaikars are lost to their families and friends forever. An overwhelming majority - about two-thirds - of those who go missing in the metropolis are adults. These figures by government officials are alarming. The Missing Persons Bureau of the Mumbai Crime Branch receives five to six complaints, on an average, thrice a week.

Strained relations at home, poor performance in exams, love affairs, and unemployment are among the major reasons behind a rise in the number of people running away. The Delhi Police recently launched its face recognition software, which has helped in tracing missing kids. However, many states, including Maharashtra, are yet to come up with a mechanism under which parents of missing children are regularly updated about the status of their complaint, as directed by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR). The NCPCR had issued a notification a couple of years ago, asking all state DGPs to come up with such a mechanism.

Missing in Mumbai
A source at the bureau said, "Jaane waale ka ek rasta hota hai, dhoondhne waale ke hazaar (it's just one road for the person leaving, but the one searching has to run in many)." Parents of those missing never divulge the actual reasons over worries about reputation, said an officer, adding, "Neither do they inform us if their relatives return home." Explaining the reason behind the high numbers, another officer said, "Most missing complaints are of children. The family files a complaint, but the child is found in a few hours or a day. Similarly, young boys and girls elope and return after getting married. In the case of the elderly, those missing are usually mentally unstable. In some cases, families file missing complaints, unaware that their loved ones have died in accidents. They find out later through hospital authorities." An official at the Woman and Child Development department, Maharashtra, said, "At present, the police do not have a mechanism to keep a check on the number of children missing; however, most of the time, their statistics are an eyewash. Even TrackChild [the national portal] doesn't have data updates from all states."

Setting an example
The Ministry of Women and Child Development, has come up with https://trackthemissingchild.gov.in, which is in English, Hindi and Bengali. The system is under the control of National Informatics Centre, which is developing a national portal TrackChild that will have data on 'missing' children and a live database to monitor the progress of those found. Manoj Kumar Singh, director (Woman & Child Development) New Delhi, said. "I am not aware about the NCPCR directive... Our ministry has the TrackChild portal, which anyone can access. Also, the Delhi Police recently introduced a face recognition software, which helps in identification of a missing child. However, I am not aware about the success rate of the software; the police will have that information." The Delhi Police has already appointed a juvenile welfare officer and has senior IPS officers dedicated to women and child issues. Bharat Lala, a constable appointed as juvenile welfare officer at Haus Khaz police station in Delhi, said, "The software has been very helpful in identifying the face of a missing child even years later."

Officialspeak
Attempts made to contact Rakesh Srivastava, secretary, MWCD, with additional charge of chairperson, NCPCR, did not yield any result, and Raman Gaur, senior consultant (legal), NCPCR, did not comment on the notification. An NCPCR official said, "The need of the hour is to have a national policy in place to tackle issues pertaining to child trafficking and missing children. "The commission is also studying the feasibility of compulsory registration of FIR by the police while recording a missing complaint. At present, the police in many states do not even have proper registers to lodge missing complaints, and instead, use their station diary for it."

Prevention is better...

• Family members should observe if the child or youth is emotionally disturbed and is displaying any behavioural changes.
• Parents should develop good communication with their children and be aware of their daily activities.
• Parents should not put additional stress or burden on their children in terms of academics.
• Girls should not be compelled to get married or take up a career against their wish.
• Parents should take timely corrective action if they suspect their child is doing something wrong.

How to register a missing person case

• The complaint should be first registered with the local police station. Family members should then approach the Missing Persons Bureau on the second floor at the police headquarters in Crawford Market.
• Family members are expected to carry with them three passport-sized photos and a large one (12x10 cm) of the missing person and a form in prescribed format filled out. The complaint number given by the local police station is a must too. The bureau will forward the large photo to Doordarshan for free in three working days.
• The police request that the complainants should inform the department once the person/s return home.

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