Cuttack: As many as 35 missing children were rescued on the first day of Pari-II, a month-long drive which began Saturday to rescue and rehabilitate missing children in the state, Crime Branch (CB) sources said Sunday.
“The rescued children include 30 boys and five girls. At least six among them were abducted and engaged as domestic help. Around 10 rescued children from Ganjam, seven from Berhampur and four from Sambalpur were forced to work as labourers in the respective areas,” CB sources said, adding that the rescued minors have been rehabilitated at child welfare committees and their parents have been informed.
The department is hopeful of rescuing more children during the month-long drive, a senior CB official said.
Notably, operation Muskan-II was renamed as operation Pari-II August 21. A dedicated team of officials was constituted for the purpose. The team is expected to carry out the rescue operation in two phases—September 1 to 15 and 16 to 30.