Frightening statistics from Delhi's police have revealed that 13 children go missing in the city each day. Many end up as slaves or are forced to work in the sex industry in a city which is now India's undisputed kidnapping capital.
With almost 17 million people packed into its crowded city streets, New Delhi is the perfect place for people to get lost. But some are never found again. They simply disappear.
That is what happened to Rao Kumar's 12 year old son, Ravi. He went missing one year ago when he left the house to get his bicycle, and never returned.
"I don't know who took my son away. I looked for him everywhere but did not find him," says Rao Kumar, the father of the missing child.
And Ravi is far from the only one.
In Delhi alone, anywhere from 2-5,000 children go missing every year, while in India as a whole,
a staggering 800,000 disappear.Having a loved one disappear takes a dreadful toll on families. Kumar has not been able to hold down a steady job or stay healthy. His only focus is finding out what happened to his son. But the answer is likely a grim one - most children who disappear in Delhi end up as sex workers or slaves.
"The kids are kept in places where no one will be able to find them. They're also kidnapped for the
organ trade business, adoption and
also for begging," says R.S. Chaurasia, chairperson of the Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA), a non-governmental organization in India which campaigns against child labor, child trafficking and child servitude.
