How India’s Network Finds and Protects Missing Children

When a child goes missing in India, police first record a formal complaint.

The child’s details are then shared through police and child-protection networks.

Online systems help compare missing-child reports with records of children who have been found.

People can also report missing or sighted children through helplines and government portals.

Railway officials look for vulnerable children at stations and on trains.

In 2024, nearly 98,400 children were newly reported missing.

Authorities found or recovered more than 98,800 children during that year.

Finding a child is only the first step because officials must check the child’s identity and safety.

They may then reunite the child with family or arrange protection if returning home is unsafe.