Over 80,000 missing women and girls traced in Maharashtra in 2 years: CM

Mumbai, Feb 24 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday informed the legislative assembly that 86,228 women and girls who had been reported missing in 2024 and 2025 were traced by the police.

Of the 93,940 women reported missing over the last two years, 67,458 were found, as per the information provided by Fadnavis who holds the Home portfolio.

Similarly, of the 23,429 girls who were reported missing during this period, 18,770 were reunited with their families, the CM's reply said.

In Mumbai alone, the police traced 4,455 minors out of the 4,515 reported missing. In Navi Mumbai, the police successfully located 313 boys and 627 girls over the two-year period.

Fadnavis also highlighted the success of Operation Muskan which focussed on the rescue of exploited and missing children.

"Between July 2015 and December 2024, 13 phases of Operation Muskan were implemented, leading to the rescue of over 41,000 children. Currently, the 14th phase of the drive is operational across the state from January 20 to February 20, 2026, and 1401 children have been rescued," the chief minister said.

In Nagpur, 3,432 women and 723 girls were traced during the two-year period. In Raigad district, the police achieved a 100 per cent success rate in 2024, tracing all 102 reported missing girls.

A special `Missing Cell' led by a woman officer has been established at every police station in the state, the reply said. Further, an Additional Director General-rank officer oversees women's safety and reviews these cases every two months to curb human trafficking, it said. PTI MR KRK