The Supreme Court of India has directed the Union Government to ensure that every state and union territory appoints a Nodal Officer to monitor and handle cases of missing children. The order came while hearing a petition filed by the NGO Guria Swayam Sevi Sansthan, which raised concerns over the rising incidents of child kidnapping and trafficking across states such as Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.

A bench of Justices B. V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan issued the directive, emphasizing the need for real-time coordination between law enforcement agencies and child protection authorities. The court instructed that once a missing child complaint is uploaded on the national portals, the information must automatically reach the state’s Nodal Officer so that immediate steps can be taken to trace the child and begin the investigation process.

During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati informed the bench about two platforms currently in use for tracking missing children the Track Child Portal, managed by law enforcement, and the Khoya-Paya Portal, which can be accessed by the general public. The court observed that both systems should be integrated in a way that allows seamless exchange of information between citizens and authorities.

Justice Nagarathna further noted that the mechanism should not merely serve as a one-way reporting system but should enable parents and guardians to actively follow up on the status of their missing children. The petitioner’s counsel also argued that many of these cases go beyond simple abductions, pointing to an organized network of human trafficking operating across multiple states. The court, however, clarified that even trafficked or kidnapped children fall under the broader definition of “missing children,” and hence, the directions would apply equally to such instances.

The Supreme Court’s order marks a crucial step toward improving the country’s child-tracking infrastructure and ensuring accountability among enforcement agencies. The matter has been scheduled for further hearing in November.

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