Vendors, porters, drivers roped in as volunteers to rescue runaway children

A number of vendors, porters and auto/taxi drivers at the Katpadi railway station will now be volunteers of ‘Project Udhayam’, an initiative of the Government Railway Police to ensure safety of children.

On Saturday, C. Sylendra Babu, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Railways, formally launched the project at the station and handed over identity cards to volunteers.

According to a railway police official, this was a programme to create awareness about safety of children.

“On one hand, we have shortage of police personnel at railway stations. On the other hand, there are high chances of children who go missing to end up at railway stations. So, we have selected vendors, porters, taxi/auto drivers as volunteers and trained them in doing what is needed if they spot children who are alone or with suspicious people,” the officer said. The volunteers were trained to spot such children and hand over them to the Government Railway Police.

2,165 rescued

The ADGP told reporters that last year the Tamil Nadu railway police rescued 2,165 children. Children who run away from homes end up at railway stations.

“It is important to protect children. In big railway stations, one or two policemen are not adequate. There are many persons who work in the railways in the canteen, auto drivers and sanitary workers at the stations. They are trained by experts and made aware on how to approach such children,” he said.

Training under this initiative of the Government Railway Police has been conducted at the Chennai Egmore railway station, Chennai Central station, Coimbatore, Salem and Tiruchi stations, and now at Katpadi in Vellore. Such training programmes will be held at the other 46 railway police stations, he added.