Missing children's portal www.khoyapaya.gov.in, launched by the Union ministry of women and child development last year, has failed to click with anxious Jharkhand parents, most of whom still prefer to lodge complaints at local police stations.
The Khoya Paya website was designed to be a comprehensive database of children who go missing from various parts of the country. Once a person registers at the portal, he or she can report a missing child and sighting of a missing child or help track a child.
But, IG CID (organised crime) Sampat Meena said there were few takers for the virtual convenience. "We are not receiving many complaints through the portal. Perhaps parents (who are not tech-savvy) are unable to register themselves and file a complaint online. So, they prefer the traditional method of going to a thana. Our two missing persons helpline are rarely used too," she said.
If one visits the portal "dashboard", the total number of users are more than 4,500, but these people are mostly from Jharkhand's neighbouring states of Bihar, Odisha and Bengal, as well as faraway Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab, among others.
Similarly, the "missing total" tab on the Khoya Paya web page shows that against the countrywide figure of 752 children, only four boys are reported from Jharkhand.
This doesn't necessarily mean that children aren't disappearing from Jharkhand at an alarming rate. According to data made available by voluntary organisations, around 2,400 boys and girls are missing from Ranchi, Dhanbad, Latehar, Pakur, Khunti, West Singhbhum since January.
Sanjay Mishra, the state convener of NGO Action against Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children said between 2010 and March 2016, 36,000 children disappeared from Jharkhand and most of them are still missing.
IG Meena stressed on the need for awareness generation at community level to make the central website more effective. "I hope the state women and child development department takes up the matter so that the portal can be accessed by every troubled parent in Jharkhand," she said.
Secretary, state women and child welfare, Vinay Kumar Choubey promised to look into the matter. "I wasn't aware that the portal is not being used. We will see what can be done to make parents more aware," he said.
