By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Dec 2: Twenty-four children from Meghalaya, aged between eight and thirteen, have been repatriated from Chikkaballapura district in Karnataka following their rescue from the Sowmya Kesanupalli Student Home in Perumale.
The incident has renewed demands for a stronger regulatory framework to prevent children from being sent out of the state under unclear or illegal arrangements.
The matter came to light on August 2, 2025, when the Chairperson of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Chikkaballapur, officially informed the Director of Social Welfare Department, Meghalaya, that 25 children from the state had been rescued. Meghalaya’s CWC members subsequently held a video conference with the children to understand the situation.
Officials said the 24 children had been sent to Karnataka in June 2025 by the Leisynshar Cultural Society. Parents were required to pay only the travel donation as the organisation claimed they would not be charged school or hostel fees.
The Social Welfare department has also coordinated with the Directorate of School Education and Literacy to facilitate the children’s school enrolment after their return. However, since the matter remains under consideration before the Karnataka High Court under the children were initially housed at the Government Children’s Home in Chikkaballapur before being transported to Shillong.
The children will now be temporarily accommodated at the Children’s Home for Girls, Mawkasiang. Bridge courses and preparatory classes will be conducted within the institution to ensure a smooth transition into the 2026 academic year. They belong to various districts of Meghalaya: ten from East Khasi Hills, seven from East Jaintia Hills, six from West Jaintia Hills and one from West Khasi Hills.
Meghalaya State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR) Chairperson Agatha K Sangma expressed concern that such incidents are becoming frequent.
She said the commission had witnessed a similar case a few months earlier, although the previous incident had involved illegal processes. She felt it was time to ensure that such episodes do not recur, and said the commission had written to the Chief Minister seeking an SOP. This followed a stakeholders’ meeting held a few months ago.
She said the note sent to the Chief Minister contained specific elements the commission wanted incorporated into the SOP. The aim, she added, was to ensure that children below 18 are sent to institutions outside the state only in a transparent and coordinated manner. She explained that the commission had proposed advance intimation to the government whenever a child is sent outside Meghalaya, including basic details, biodata and verification of the receiving institution by state authorities. The duration of each child’s stay should also be clearly specified, she said.
Sangma emphasised that monitoring must be undertaken by the state government in coordination with the host state to ensure the children’s safety and living conditions, as no such mechanism currently exists. She added that organisations sending students outside Meghalaya must operate legally and pointed out that the organisation involved in previous cases — including one where two children had died due to food poisoning — was not legally registered. She urged society to be vigilant and verify an organisation’s legal status before allowing children to be sent. She also felt parents must be far more aware, saying her visits to a few families revealed that many did not even know the name of the institute or the district where their children had been sent.
Director of Social Welfare, Camelia Doreen Lyngwa, said parents had entrusted their children to people outside the state hoping for better opportunities, but the Karnataka authorities found the children’s accommodation did not meet required standards. She added that the Karnataka government had informed Meghalaya accordingly and said involvement of the High Court was crucial as the matter carried legal implications affecting the children’s safety, security and mental well-being.
Lyngwa said that under Integrated Child Protection Services, the state has around 600 personnel, and that the rescued children are being categorised as children in need of care and protection. She said parents had taken a risk based on trust and had handed over their children to an organisation that was not legally registered with the district authorities.
She said the Social Welfare Department, working in what she described as “mission mode,” aims to ensure that children in Meghalaya feel cared for and protected. All logistical arrangements for the 24 children — including accommodation and food — are being handled by the department. She added that well-wishers had come forward to donate blankets for the children for the winter. She emphasised that the department wanted to handle the matter transparently, with love, care and protection, in line with Mission Vatsalya of the Government of India.
Lyngwa expressed gratitude to the Karnataka government for identifying the children’s living conditions and promptly contacting Meghalaya authorities.
