Thirty-four children managed to flee from the Government Children’s Home for Boys in Royapuram early on Saturday morning. Twenty-seven were nabbed within a few hours while seven children are suspected to have fled the city by train. Residents near the home say the ill-treatment meted out to children at home led them to flee.
Sources with the Kasimedu police said the facility on S.N. Chetty Street houses more than 150 children including those found roaming in the city, rescued from child labour and remanded for juvenile offences committed inside the city police limits.
The escape took place around 3 a.m. after the children were locked in their respective rooms. “Some teenagers managed to sneak through a small opening in the wall in one of the rooms which was not properly cemented. The rest of the group followed,” said an investigation officer attached to the Kasimedu police station.
The group that included remand prisoners and young children ran out of the compound after scaling its high walls. Watchman Arumugam of the home said he spotted some children running outside in the dark. “I ran after them but managed to catch only four of them,” he added.
Staff from the Children’s home along with some residents mounted a search at various points of exit from the city including Chennai Central, CMBT and Chennai Egmore. 27 escapees were apprehended and lodged again in the Royapuram home. Five of the seven children, who are from the northern part of the country, enquired the way to Chennai Central from some construction workers from Bihar and are suspected to have boarded a train.
A police team has been formed to search for the seven escapees.
Residents near the home stated that the children are ill-treated and discriminated against. “The staff make the boys do all kinds of work including cleaning the drainage but don’t even give them quality food,” said a woman.
According to Kasimedu police, the escape of inmates from the home has become a common occurrence as the security remains inadequate. Of late, the staff at the home do not even lodge police complaints if there is an escape, police added.
