Mumbai: Special police unit rescues 23 teens from city’s eateries, factories

Children often end up in exploitative labour due to their family’s economic hardships. Representational pic

The Special Juvenile Aid Police Unit (SJAPU) of the Mumbai Crime Branch has achieved a significant breakthrough in its fight against child labour and exploitation. In a successful operation spanning 23 days, the unit rescued 23 children, aged between 14 and 16 years, subjected to exploitative labour. The children were made to work in gruelling conditions in factories and hotels across Mumbai.

Hailing from Bihar and Nepal, the children were forced to endure over 12 hours of work daily in exchange for a daily compensation of Rs 200. At the time of payment, their employers would deduct approximately Rs 50 as the cost of meals.

Over the past seven months, the SJAPU has rescued 72 children from the clutches of unscrupulous factory and hotel owners. The current operation led to the arrest of five people and all operations this year have collectively led to the arrest of 35 individuals involved in orchestrating these exploitative practices. The rescued children primarily belong to Nepal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. "We have registered 21 different cases and arrested 35 people for subjecting children to exploitative labour under multiple sections of the Juvenile Justice Act," said Police Inspector (PI) Manoj Sutar of SJAPU, underscoring the unit's commitment to upholding the rights and welfare of vulnerable children.

Rescued children's ori gin

According to SJAPU, many of these children, hailing from Nepal and Bihar, find themselves in this predicament due to the economic hardships faced by their
families. In some cases, families have been complicit in coercing children into labour for financial support. Operators of small factories and hotels exploit children by subjecting them to arduous work hours without fair compensation.

Of the 72 rescued children, 15 are from Nepal, 36 from Bihar, 16 from Uttar Pradesh, and five are from West Bengal. To ensure their well-being and appropriate reintegration, the rescued children are being transferred to the David Sassoon Industrial School and Children's Home in Matunga. Here, officials initiate communication with children's parents and conduct thorough inquiries to assess the possibility of trafficking.

Subsequent to profile verification, counselling sessions are conducted to educate the parents about the perils of child labour, after which custody of the child is restored to their families. The SJAPU is a specialised division of the Mumbai Crime Branch, meant to tackle child labour and trafficking. In 2022, it rescued 38 children and apprehended 27 suspects involved in employing children.