Protect us, 300 children appeal to CM

NEW DELHI: More than 300 children from outer Delhi’s Shahbad Dairy on Thursday tied rakhis to effigies of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and the local ACP, requesting

NEW DELHI: More than 300 children from outer Delhi’s Shahbad Dairy on Thursday tied rakhis to effigies of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and the local ACP, requesting for protection.

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Saksham, an NGO working for the welfare of children, said around 171 kids had gone missing in the forest area near Shahbad Dairy between December 2013 and March 2015.

Of these missing children, 66 are untraceable. Five children — four of them below 10 — were killed, 28 girls were raped and 17 sexually abused.

The NGO said it got the figures from RTI replies.

On Thursday, on the occasion of Rakshabandhan, the children of the area and their parents organized a programme during which they tied rakhis on CM Kejriwal’s effigy.

“We hope the CM provides CCTV cameras in the areas to protect the children and the women. There is a lack of schools. The people are looking up to the chief minister for protection and education,” said Sant Lal, NGO member.

Hindustan Times had in June reported how lack of toilets led to an increase in crime.

The NGO had invited Kejriwal to attend Thursday’s event but did not get any response from the CM’s office. They made an effigy and tied rakhis on it. They also tied a rakhis to the effigy of the local ACP.

The children prepared a memorandum to be submitted to the CM’s office.

“The people of Shahbad dairy are economically backward, disadvantaged and vulnerable. Our on-ground experience tells us the people of the area do not feel safe. Thursday’s event was an attempt to bridge the gap between the people and the law enforcement agency and building a sense of trust and cooperation between them,” said Soha Moitra, director, Child Rights and You, another NGO which works with Saksham in the area.