RPF Inspector Chandana Sinha saves 1,500 children, wins Ati Vishisht Rail Sewa Puraskar
RPF Inspector Chandana Sinha has been honoured with the Ati Vishisht Rail Sewa Puraskar for rescuing over 1,500 children across Uttar Pradesh's railway network. Leading large-scale anti-trafficking operations, including Operation Nanhe Farishte, she and her women-led team have intercepted hundreds of missing and trafficked minors, turning railway platforms into crucial rescue points amid rising crimes against children.
New Delhi: Railway Protection Force (RPF) Inspector Chandana Sinha was conferred the Ati Vishisht Rail Sewa Puraskar for rescuing at least 1,500 children across Uttar Pradesh’s railway network. Her remarkable work has drawn widespread praise, as her team intercepted around 494 children in 2024 alone. Of these, 41 minors were rescued by her team, while Sinha personally intercepted 152 missing children who were victims of trafficking or trapped due to various circumstances.
Sinha received the prestigious honour on January 9 in Delhi. Her contribution has not been confined to a single station or region but has brought about a significant change across the rail network. The award recognises not a single act, but her relentless efforts in building a robust system to rescue vulnerable children.
How did it start?
Sinha spearheads operations at the Lucknow Charbagh railway station. On a routine day, she intercepted an isolated passenger travelling with a child. Later, during a seemingly ordinary evening in 2022, she received a complaint about a mother and her three-year-old son who had gone missing in the Chhath Puja crowd. After searching for nearly two hours, she found them sitting unaware on a bench. The incident changed her perspective on missing-child cases, and she gradually became deeply involved in similar rescues.
In June 2024, she led Operation Nanhe Farishte, a child-rescue initiative of Indian Railways. Her team—largely comprising women—began rescuing children along trafficking routes spanning Bihar, Punjab, and Haryana.
What does NCRB data show?
According to the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report, 1,77,335 cases of crime against children were registered in India in 2023, marking a 9.2 per cent increase over 2022. The crime rate against children rose to 39.9 per one lakh child population in 2023, up from 36.6 in 2022.
Among major crime categories, kidnapping and abduction accounted for the largest share with 79,884 cases (45%), followed by offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, which recorded 67,694 cases (38.2%).
Age-wise data shows that 762 victims were below six years, 3,229 were aged 6–12, 15,444 were between 12–16, and 21,411 were aged 16–18, taking the total number of child victims to 40,846. Most victims in rape-related cases were girls.
Kidnapping and abduction affected 82,106 children, at a rate of 18 per one lakh population. Of these, 58,927 were general abductions, including 37,844 cases classified as kidnapping. Notably, 14,637 cases involved the abduction of minor girls for forced marriage.