Lucknow minor girl scales 17ft wall to flee state-run shelter

LUCKNOW: A 17-year-old girl scaled the 17ft boundary wall of Rajkiya Bal Grih in Motinagar and escaped on Thursday, making it the fourth such incident since December last year and raising questions on security at state-run shelter homes.
Shelter superintendent Reeta Tamta blamed the absence of adequate number of guards on the premises for the frequent breakouts.
Referring to the recent case, she said the minor in question was unwilling to stay within the confines of the home because she wanted to marry her boyfriend.
When TOI visited the spot, it found an employee guarding the gate in the absence of guards. A female guard was seen leaving the premises because her shift had ended.
"There are only five guards assigned to this facility - three for the day and two for night. But, they hardly ever report to duty. Out of the three day guards, only one came today," said Ashok Dubey, the employee at the gate.
The shelter is learnt to have requested a dozen security guards, but to no avail.
Probation officer Jaipal Verma said they were probing how and why the minor girl escaped.
"Appropriate action will be taken against those found guilty of dereliction of duty," Verma said.
On Sunday, a 17-year-old native of Chapra brought to the shelter by Childline on Saturday had scaled the boundary around 2.30pm and escaped. In January, a 12-year-old girl had escaped in a similar fashion while December saw the breakout of a 15-year-old.