Patna: Police in Bihar have launched what officials describe as their most extensive initiative to combat child trafficking, deploying 44 specialised anti-human trafficking units (AHTUs) across airports and districts under a campaign named Operation Kavach.
The Criminal Investigation Department’s division for weaker sections, led by Dr. Amit Jain, announced the formation of the units as part of a wider security network intended to disrupt trafficking routes. Authorities say special teams will operate at Patna, Darbhanga and Gaya airports, locations identified as vulnerable transit points for traffickers.
Units will be headed by inspectors, while district-level coordination will fall to deputy superintendents of police based in headquarters. Officials say 24-hour surveillance will be maintained at airports, and anyone transporting a child under suspicious circumstances will be subject to immediate investigation.
The initiative also introduces procedural changes to missing-child cases. If a child remains untraced for four months, the case will automatically be escalated to the district-level AHTU. Policymakers argue that the shift is intended to accelerate investigations that previously stalled at local police stations and to focus resources on organised trafficking networks.
All 1,196 police stations in the state are now linked to the national Mission Vatsalya portal, which aggregates data on missing and recovered children. Authorities say the system enables information sharing across jurisdictions and aims to streamline search operations.
Recent data underscores the scale of the challenge. In 2025, 14,699 children were reported missing in the state; 7,772 have been recovered, leaving 6,927 cases unresolved. Police headquarters has ordered a comprehensive review of outstanding files and a door-to-door verification exercise to update records. Officials acknowledge that in some cases children return home without authorities being notified, creating discrepancies in official statistics.
