From Akola to Pune: How CCTV Surveillance Led to Rescue of Missing Observation Home Children
In a remarkable display of coordinated police work, authorities in Akola successfully traced and rescued two minor boys who had gone missing from a government observation home fourteen days earlier. The children were located safe in Pune following an extensive multi-district search operation that leveraged hundreds of CCTV cameras across Maharashtra.
The Disappearance and Initial Response
The case was registered on January 10, 2026, when Motiram Gajanan Telang, a 27-year-old security guard at the Government Children's Home (Bal Gruha) in Akola, filed a complaint at the Khadan police station. He reported that two students from the home, Tushar Purushottam Vadne (10) and Sushant Yogesh Bangar (11), had left for Saraswati Vidyalaya in Malkapur at approximately 7 am but failed to return.
After preliminary search efforts proved unsuccessful, the police formally registered a case under Section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Following discussions between the boys' parents and Superintendent of Police Archit Chandak, four special teams were constituted to locate the minors.
Challenges and Investigation Strategy
The investigation faced significant challenges as neither boy possessed a mobile phone, making digital tracking impossible. Police sources indicated that the children might have left the juvenile home due to bullying by other residents. Both children were not involved in any unlawful activity and had been placed in the observation home solely for rehabilitation and care until they could be restored to family custody.
The specially formed teams comprised personnel from the Sub-Divisional Police Office, Local Crime Branch, and Khadan police station. They embarked on a comprehensive search operation covering more than 1,200 kilometers across seven districts: Akola, Amravati, Washim, Jalgaon, Shegaon, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and Pune.
The Role of CCTV Surveillance
Over the course of the 14-day operation, police teams scrutinized hundreds of CCTV recordings from various locations. This technological approach proved crucial in tracking the children's movement across districts. The operation, conducted under Operation Muskan, involved systematic checks at bus terminals and railway stations, along with widespread circulation of missing-person posters across Maharashtra and neighboring regions.
The extensive CCTV analysis eventually led investigators to Pune, where the two boys were located safe. The successful conclusion of the search highlights the growing importance of surveillance technology in modern policing and missing persons cases.
Command Structure and Personnel
The operation was conducted under the supervision of SP Archit Chandak, with Additional SP Chandrakant Reddy, SDPO Sudarshan Patil, Probationary Assistant SP Eshani Anand, and Senior Police Inspector Manoj Kedare providing crucial oversight. The task force led by Manoj Kedare, which included API Purushottam Thackeray and fourteen other personnel, played a particularly vital role in ensuring the successful rescue.
This case demonstrates how coordinated police efforts, supported by technological infrastructure like CCTV networks, can achieve positive outcomes in challenging missing persons investigations. The Akola police's persistence across multiple districts over two weeks ultimately brought the children to safety and reunited them with concerned authorities.
