A non #COVID19 thread: When I first moved to #India, I'd open the newspaper to finds ads like these, for missing children. It made me wonder - where do they end up? Every 8 seconds a child goes missing in the country. So @Imo_Anderson investigated. #IndiasMissingChildren

This is Sunita. She went "missing" from a remote and tribal village in the state of Jharkand a decade ago - a couple befriended her parents promising her an education - but were they were traffickers. Instead she was sent to Delhi to work for a family. #IndiasMissingChildren.

It’s a story we heard from others. Traffickers get friendly with a family, and dupe them into sending their children away. They’re middlemen. The children are then “sold” to others, ending up at “placement agencies” where they’re hired by Indian families. #IndiasMissingChildren.

For the parents of children who are trafficked it’s heartbreaking. Sunita’s mother Suggi hasn’t seen her daughter for over a decade. She regrets sending her away, but with v little money thought it was a temporary way to offer her a child a better life. #IndiasMissingChildren.

At first Sunita’s parents never went to the police. They felt scared. They finally did thanks to Poonam Toppo, from @asha_jharkhand who learnt about the case through a women’s group in the village. She convinced them to report it. We went along. #IndiasMissingChildren.

In Jan police arrested 2 women in connection w trafficking Sunita. Police couldn’t find her in Delhi. They think she moved to Himachal but may be overseas w the family she worked for. These are newer photos of her. Maybe twitter can help find Sunita? RT #IndiasMissingChildren.

Around 70,000 children go “missing” in India every year. They end up in domestic slavery, sex work and child labour. We went on a raid with @BBAIndia as they rescued boys who’d been in child labour in bakeries. One of them was a boy we’ll call Ahmed... #IndiasMissingChildren.

After the raid Ahmed and the other boys were taken to a rehabilitation centre run by @BBAIndia. A week later he told me about the horrific abuse he was subjected to - locked inside, branded with a hot metal rod, working long hours. Inhumane. #ModernSlavery #IndiasMissingChildren.

The shelter tracked down Ahmed’s mum but the reunion is awkward as she sent him away to work. She says she won’t do it again and is given state support to help. Again, traffickers tricked the family. But breaking the cycle of child trafficking is hard. #IndiasMissingChildren.

These clips are from a half hour documentary “India’s Missing Children” which aired on @BBCNews this weekend. You can still catch it on @BBCiPlayer if you’re in the UK: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000j5jj/our-world-indias-missing-children

#IndiasMissingChildren.

We talked to other survivors of child trafficking with harrowing tales. If you have a thought or comment pls get in touch. Big thanks to @Imo_Anderson @nicksturdee, Adam Grimley @NayarVarunm, Sanjay Ganguly, Gordon Watt, Jan Leman. A team effort to tell an important tale.

Thanks @BBAIndia @NandyGram @asha_jharkhand Poonam Toppo, @shwetankmishra @KislayaKelly @SHAKTIVAHINI. A mention to @britishasiantst and their new ambassador against child trafficking in India @katyperry. More awareness is needed to save more children. #IndiasMissingChildren.