State police launch ‘Op TRACE’ to find missing girls
DGP Harish Kumar Gupta and other officials release Operation TRACE poster at state police office in Mangalagiri on Thursday
- The operation is a month-long initiative from Aug 1–31 to locate missing girls using advanced tools like facial recognition and Aadhaar verification
- The campaign follows a five-point strategy — Trace, Reconnect, Assist, Counsel, and Empower —providing rescued girls with family reunification, medical aid, legal support, psychological counseling, and long-term rehabilitation
Vijayawada: In a focused effort to trace missing girls across Andhra Pradesh, director general of police Harish Kumar Gupta on Thursday launched ‘Operation TRACE’, a month-long special drive to be conducted from August 1 to 31. The campaign, coordinated by the women and child safety wing, aims to address growing concerns over abductions and disappearances of girls by uniting the police machinery in a targeted, statewide initiative.
Unveiling the campaign poster at the DGP’s office, Harish Kumar Gupta explained that Operation TRACE is built on a five-point strategy — Trace, Reconnect, Assist, Counsel, and Empower. Under the first component ‘Trace’, advanced tools like CCTNS, theMission Vatsalya Portal, facial recognition software, and Aadhaar-based age verification will be used to identify and track missing girls. Intensive surveillance will be undertakenat transport hubs, border checkposts, and shelters, especially in high-risk areas, with the deployment of women police officers.
‘Reconnect’ focuses on reuniting rescued girls with their families and providing them temporary accommodation under the care of Child Welfare Committees (CWCs). Under ‘Assist’, girls will receive immediate medical help, food, shelter, clothing, legal aid, and identity documentation. In cases involving trafficking or abuse, FIRs will be promptly registered.
‘Counsel’ will involve psychological support and mental health interventions in partnership with NGOs, while ‘Empower’ aims to ensure long-term rehabilitation by facilitating education, skill development, career guidance, and linking survivors to government welfare schemes.
The DGP also released a detailed action plan for the operation. From August 1–2, task forces at district and sub-divisional levels will be formed to collect and consolidate data on missing children. From August 3–10, inspections will be carried out at government and NGO-run shelters, and FIRs will be reverified using technologies such as DNA testing and facial recognition.
During August 11–30, special search operations will be held in railway stations, bus stands, temples, and red-light areas. A public engagement campaign titled “FIND HER” will also be rolled out to encourage citizen participation.
To report missing children, the public can use the “Report Missing Children” feature in the Shakti App or reach out through the following helplines: 112 (Police), 1098 (Child Helpline), 181 (Women’s Helpline), and the Shakti WhatsApp Helpline at 7993485111.
DGP Harish Kumar Gupta directed all district police units to prioritise Operation TRACE and ensure its strict implementation through local police stations.
Senior officials including ADGP (L&O) N. Madhusudhana Reddy, IGP APSP and In-charge of women and child safety wing B Rajakumari, and SP, women protection cell, N Sridevi Rao were present at the launch event.
