Kumbh Mela steps up anti-trafficking efforts
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During the event, as many as 150 million people are expected to visit the festival city of Prayagraj to bathe at the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna, and a mythical third river, the Saraswati. The festival which began on January 15 runs till March 31.
“In the melee, it is very easy for a child to just disappear,” said Subedar Singh, a campaigner with anti-trafficking charity Pragati Gramodyog Evam Samaj Kalyan Sansthan.
“Thousands of children, particularly girls between 12-15 years old, are left behind by their families to take care of the elderly, who spend up to a month here. These girls are always at risk,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation yesterday.
Armed with temporary identity cards and pamphlets, Singh and a group of volunteers have helped set up seven camps to keep track of children who travel with their families to attend the festival.
Religious congregations are an integral part of Indian culture but are becoming dangerous places for children and thousands are reported missing each year, child rights campaigners say.
“We have consistently seen that during these events, there is a noticeable spike in the number of children reported missing,” said Smita Dharmamer of Aangan Trust, a charity that works on child protection across six Indian states.