Hyderabad: Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi has appreciated the Rachakonda police for rescuing bonded child labourers from brick kilns in Choutuppal. Around 200 kids aged between seven and 16 were rescued by the police under Operation Smile on Tuesday. The police also arrested 11 brick kiln owners. “Applaud the efforts of Telangana State police. Together, we can save every child,” (sic) Satyarthi tweeted.
Rachakonda police registered cases under Sections 370(5) and 374 and 79 of the Juvenile Justice Act and on Friday arrested kiln owners B. Krishna, R. Venkate-swarlu, C. Venkataratnam, D. Prasad, B. Laxminarayana, M. Manoj Kumar, M. Venkatrat-nam, M. Manoj Kumar, C. Malakonda-iahlu, V. Kondepu Naidu and M. Madhavarao. The brick kilns are located in Pedda Kondauru village. Police commissioner Mahesh Bhagawat said that Mr Satyarthi’s appreciation has increased their moral responsibility.
"This will be an inspiration to us in making Rachakonda a child labour free zone and we will do our best to protect children," he said. Police said that since all the kids were from Odisha, they were handed over to district Child Welfare Commission (CWC). Later, the Odisha government was informed about the kids. A team from Odisha met the kids in Pedda Kondur and collected their details.
As of now, the children are in the care of their parents who also work in the same kilns. "The Odisha team will submit a report to the government and CWC officials are rehabilitating the kids," an official said. The arrested owners were remanded.
