State Director-General of Police P S Pasricha today said he had instructed all nine police commissionerates and 33 police districts in the state to prepare dossiers on missing children across Maharashtra in the wake of the Nithari killings. The DGP also spoke of increased trafficking of women in Maharashtra, especially Mumbai.

“A special drive is being conducted by the social security branch of the police across the state to nab those engaged in the trade,” he said. He was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the 60th Foundation Day Celebrations of the State Wireless Department here.

Asked about the steps taken by his office to curb the menace of missing children in the state being highlighted in a series by The Indian Express, Pasricha said, “A circular seeking the details of missing children has been sent to all police districts and commissionerates”.

The Pune police has already begun a drive across the 20 police stations in the city, which reported 212 boys and 241 girls missing in 2006. The actual figure is 549 boys and 627 girls but the city police claims 337 boys and 386 girls were ‘recovered’ (returned home on their own or were traced by their parents and relatives).

Pasricha appealed to parents and relatives of the missing children, who have returned home, to inform the police stations where they had registered the missing complaints. “Our experience shows that 90 per cent of the children return home but parents fail to inform the police about their return, which further compounds the problem,” he said.

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