Police rescue five children from being trafficked
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, June 12 2011:
Despite the rescue of many state children from unregistered children homes outside the state, particularly in South India, attempts to take away state children outside the state are still on.
An attempt to traffick five children, all below 16 years, were foiled by police on Sunday when they intercepted them during checking a vehicle
at Sekmai.
All five children were from Moirang and police at the check post intercepted them while they were travelling on a Tata Winger around 1.30 pm today.
They were being taken away by a couple who were detained by the police along with the five children.
The couple was later identified as Moirangthem Deben (38) and his wife Achoubi.
Deben was involved in earlier cases of child trafficking to Chennai.
Police detained them from proceeding further on the strength of an order issued by the state Social Welfare Department which prohibited children below 12-year from going outside state.
They suspect that the child traffickers had succeeded in convincing the parents and guardians of the children to drop the children to Dimapur.
An order issued by state Social Welfare Department on November 2, 2010 had banned sending out children below the age of 12 years of age or those in primary schools to other states to 'pursue' education.
The department issued the order in compliance with the order of the Supreme Court passed on September 1, 2010.The Supreme Court, in its order directed Manipur and Assam to ensure that no child below the age of 12 years or those in the primary school level are sent outside for pursuing education until further orders.
Minors are being regularly trafficked out of the state to other cities of the country by luring their parents and guardians with false promise of free education.
The interception of the five children comes at a time when 19 state children, all from Tamenglong district, were recently rescued from an orphan home in Maharashtra.
Around 200 cases of child trafficking have been reported during 2007 to February, 2010 in Manipur.
Considering the alarming increase in child trafficking, Manipur police officer had planned to open anti-human police trafficking cells in some selected districts.
Police admitted that human trafficking was a major concern in Manipur and they were gearing up to tackle it.