Lack of adequate number of police personnel has rendered the Jamshedpur child welfare committee unable to send five children back to their homes.

The children are staying at protection homes in Sonari.

Two of the children, a 16-year-old girl and a 12-year-old boy, are from Assam. The three other boys, who are in the age group of 12 to 15 years, are from different parts of the Jharkhand.

The children had fled their homes. They were found and handed over to the child welfare committee for safe custody.

Pushpa Tirkey, chairperson of the committee, said whenever they are handed over a child, they counsel the child before arranging to send him or her back home.

'We intimate the child's parents about the whereabouts, requesting them to take him back. But as in most of the cases, the parents of such children do not turn up for taking them back due to poverty. We have to arrange their passage back to their homes safely. In any case, a child has to be sent back his home ideally within a month time escorted by a police party,” Tirkey told The Telegraph.

“For almost two months now, we are not getting police escort for these children,” she added.

For taking a girl child back home, the escort party must have two policewomen and a policeman. If it is a boy, then two policeman have to escort him back home.

'We are aware that the district police authority are under tremendous pressure for the ongoing Assembly elections in the state and a large number of policemen are away on deputation for poll duty, but we have to look into the concerns about these five children as well as their families also. As of now, the matter is hanging in balance and is far away from being solved anytime soon,' Tirkey said.

She said the girl from Assam had fled home.

'The girl is a Class X student and has to prepare for her board examination at her home state. We are concerned over sending all the five children back home, but the matter of the girl student is a bit urgent as she has to appear for the board examination,” Tirkey pointed out.

Senior superintendent of police Anoop Birtharay said they could not keep the committee’s request for the escort parties as a large number of police personnel are away on election duty.

“The police personnel will return back by December 21, but I will try to provide the escort parties for the safe passage of the children before then,” Birtharay said.