UP child rights panel took no steps to curb trafficking for over a year, reveals RTI query

The state commission for protection of child rights did not initiate any steps to curb the menace of child trafficking from April 2018 to August 2019, reveals the reply to a Right To Information (RTI) query. This, despite human trafficking being a huge problem in UP -- a state that shares its border with Nepal -- said social activists.

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According to the reply received by social activist Rashmi Gupta, the commission launched no activities or campaigns aimed at curbing child trafficking in the above-mentioned period.

“The commission also did not write to the administrations or the police authorities of the districts that share their border with Nepal regarding any initiative for curbing child trafficking,” said child rights activist Umesh Gupta.

He said that during this “period of silence”, the commission received three complaints of child trafficking and 20 complaints of children going missing. “But the child rights panel never wrote to the district magistrates or the police superintendents of the border districts on taking any special measures to stop trafficking of children across the Indo-Nepal border,” said Gupta.

Referring to the RTI reply in which the commission denied preparing a report on the status of child protection in the state, he said, “So, the state commission for protection of child rights has no information about the status of child protection here.”

When contacted, chairman of the child rights panel, Vishesh Gupta, said, “Different activities were carried out to ensure that child rights were safeguarded. It is not that we did not do anything. We just refrained from issuing arbitrary orders. We prepared a road map and focused on educating people. We have allocated districts to members of the panel. I am looking after two districts.”