As many as 34 children, reportedly being trafficked from Bihar, were rescued by the Telangana Police at the Kazipet Junction in a joint operation with the Railway Protection Force (RPF), officials said on Thursday.

A senior official who was part of the rescue operation said that people from different states across the country come Hyderabad and Secunderabad in search of small-time jobs and with them some children, most of whom are runaways, looking for the next meal, get lured with promises of employment.

He said the kids end up working menial jobs in small-time industries where they make bangles or disposable products and the wages are below minimal.

The official said the Telangana Police, with the help of informants and sources, were able to identify these kids at the Kazipet Junction and acted quickly to rescue them, adding that the rescued children will be sent back to their hometowns at the Telangana government’s expense.

The official said the children will be handed over to NGOs in Bihar who will ensure the kids are safely sent to their respective homes.

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In a related incident, earlier this month, 34 girls among over 400 children were rescued from the New Delhi Railway Station in the national capital in a joint rescue drive by child rights bodies and the Northern Railways.

According to an official statement, the joint rescue drive was organized in association with Northern Railways, SATHI, Salam Baalak Trust and Prayas JAC Society at the New Delhi railway station with the help of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC)-Mayur Vihar, Varun Pathak of the CWC (Bench of Magistrates).

During the drive, 402 children, including 372 boys and 34 girls were rescued from the bustling railway station and handed over to the CWC for protection and care.

As per the statement, the rescued children—which included runaways, child labourers and those reported missing— have been sent to various child care institutions in the city after completing all legal formalities and procedures, adding that Railway Protection Force Police and Government Railway Police were also involved in the rescue drive.

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Fugitive pro-Khalistan leader Amritpal Singh’s wife Kirandeep Kaur was detained Punjab’s Amritsar airport on Thursday ahead of attempt to board a flight out of the country to London.

According to reports quoting sources in the Punjab Police, Kirandeep was detained at Amritsar airport and is currently being questioned by the police and customs officials. Her London flight was scheduled to leave at 1:30 pm.

As per the sources, Kirandeep Kaur— who married Amritpal Singh in February this year and moved to radical Sikh preacher’s ancestral village of Jallupur Kheda in Punjab—is a United Kingdom citizen with a UK passport and has no cases filed against her in Punjab or any other part of India.

They said that Kirandeep has been detained as a precautionary measure under the legal process that allows the questioning of the family and acquaintances of an accused who is absconding.

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However, neither the Punjab Police nor any central agency has any FIR or evidence against Kirandeep being an active member of Babbar Khalsa International in the UK. In March, Amritpal’s wife was questioned by the police at her Jallupur Kheda home in connection with alleged foreign funding for her husband’s separatist activities.

Amritpal Singh married Kirandeep Kaur in February this year, months after the notorious Khalistani leader was named the chief of separatist outfit ‘Waris Punjab De’.

Kirandeep is an NRI residing in the UK with family roots in Punjab’s Jalandhar.

A crackdown was launched to nab the self-styled Khalistani leader Amritpal Singh after the Waris Punjab De chief and his supporters armed with swords and guns, stormed a police station in Ajnala on the outskirts of Amritsar city last month and clashed with police for the release of one of his aides Lovepreet Singh Toofan.

On March 18, nearly three weeks after the incident, the Punjab Police launched a massive manhunt to nab the radical Sikh preacher and his associates.

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Oxfam India received 1.5 crore in foreign funding between 2013 and 2016, violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), the CBI has said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in its ongoing investigation into the Indian branch of the global NGO, has claimed that Oxfam India used to route funds of its foreign affiliates, such as Oxfam Australia, Oxfam Great Britain, in India to selected NGOs in violation of FCRA rules.

The probe agency has also claimed that Oxfam India also exercised control over funds and projects and was as per email communication uncovered during the investigation, planning to pressure the Central government to renew its FCRA license through foreign governments and institutions.

On Wednesday, the federal agency searched Oxfam India’s Delhi office and has booked the NGO and others for alleged violations of FCRA rules.

An official said that the CBI uncovered incriminating documents during Wednesday’s raid and subsequently an FIR has been registered against Oxfam India.

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The FIR claimed that as per email communication found during IT (income tax) survey by the CBDT, Oxfam India was planning to pressure Indian government for renewal of FCRA through foreign governments and foreign institutions.

Earlier this month, the Union Home Ministry had filed a complaint against the NGO, wherein it alleged that Oxfam India planned to channel funds by circumventing the law after it FCRA license expired. The complaint is now part of the CBI’s FIR.

According to reports quoting sources, the Home Ministry purportedly found that even after registering under the FCRA, which bars foreign transfers, Oxfam India continued to transfer foreign contributions to various entities.

As per sources, a survey carried out by the Income Tax Department uncovered multiple emails which revealed that Oxfam India was allegedly planning to circumvent FCRA provisions by routing funds to other FCRA-registered associations or through the for-profit consultancy route.

They said that the survey also purportedly “exposed” Oxfam India as a possible instrument of foreign policy of foreign organisations or entities, which have liberally funded the organisation over the years.

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