Ranchi: Young visitors to the Jagannathpur Rath Mela are being given special safety wristbands this year to help reunite them with their families if they get separated in the crowd. The bands have space for the child’s name and the contact numbers of their parents.The initiative has been launched by social organisation Pratigya as a pilot project. The historic annual fair attracts thousands of devotees from across the state, and several cases of missing children are reported every year.Ajay Kumar, secretary of Pratigya, said, “The initiative was proposed by local youths working with us. If it is successful, we will request the district administration to adopt it on a larger scale from next year.”The non-profit is implementing the project in collaboration with the fair’s organising committee and the local ward councillor. Each safety wristband carries the names of the parents, their mobile numbers and the official police helpline number to ensure that a lost child can be quickly reunited with the family.Kriti Tirkey, a resident of Jagannathpur and an associate of the organisation, said missing children have been a recurring concern at the fair. “I have lived in Jagannathpur basti since childhood, and every year we hear of children going missing from the fair. If a lost child is found, they are usually unable to give details about their family, making it difficult to reunite them with their parents,” she said.Tirkey added, “This is why we are distributing these bands among children visiting the fair with their parents and writing down the names and phone numbers. We have provided space for two numbers — one of the parents accompanying the child and another of someone at home — in case one number is unreachable.”The organisation is also distributing the safety bands in nearby schools and through parking volunteers stationed at the fair to ensure wider coverage across the festival grounds.
Children show off the bands
An official ties the band to the wrist of a child
