Child trafficking: Jharkhand team to reach Kerala

Palakkad (Ker), May 30: A team of Social Justice Committee members from

is expected to arrive in the next two days to discuss rehabilitation of the children, who were illegally transported to the state from

, Jharkhand and

recently.

The Kerala Child Rights Commission sources said a decision on the rehabilitation of the under-aged children would be taken after a meeting with them.

A meeting of the Commission members was held here today.

The Commission chairperson Neela Gangadharan visited two orphanages in the district, where a section of the trafficked children are housed temporarily, and collected evidences.

She met the children at the orphanages in Malampuzha and Pezhunakara and also directed the managers of the institutions to take necessary steps for their upkeep.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said here that the government would take further steps regarding the issue after getting a report from the Commission.

A total of 580 under-aged children from Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal were brought here in two batches on Saturday and Sunday by trains.

Railway police detained the children and arrested eight persons who accompanied them for bringing them without proper documents.

The arrested said the children were meant to be brought to two orphanages in Kozhikode and Malappuram districts in the state.

PTI