Geo-tagging proves to be a reliable means to keep children safe in Tirupati

Child geo-tagging at Tirumala Brahmotsavams ensures quick reunification of lost children with parents in crowded events.

On October 6, when Kathula Akhila Lakshmi Vaishnavi (12) of Vinukonda town went missing in the crowd, the Blue Colts team attached to the Tirumala Two Town police restored the girl to her mother Anjali Devi in no time.

Similarly, when Savinash, 4, got separated from his parents on October 7, the child tag team reached out to the crowd through the public address system and helped restore the child within forty minutes to his mother Ramya, a native of Arakkonam town in Ranipet district of Tamil Nadu.

Geo-tagging, a reliable means of keeping children safe in crowded locations and Jam-packed events, has once again proved its efficacy during the ongoing Tirumala Srivari Brahmotsavams.

Even as the crowd situation reached a crescendo on Garuda Seva day on Tuesday (October 8, 2024) by noon, the number of children geo-tagged stood close to around 24000. The police department has made it mandatory for every child arriving at Tirumala to get geo-tagged. The tag tied to the wrist of a child helps the department get details of the child such as his/her name, parents’ name, mobile numbers etc. 

When a child goes missing and is traced by someone in the crowd, they have to immediately alert the security officials sighted nearby, who in turn inform the child tag team. The team member reaches the location, takes custody of the child and hands him/her over to the parent.

According to the Superintendent of Police (Tirupati district) L. Subbarayudu, child geo-tagging is done 24x7 at as many as 22 places atop Tirumala hills. Staff members from the ICDS, Anganwadi workers and Srivari Sevaks (volunteers enrolled by the TTD) have been roped in for this service.

The system yielded results when several children lost in the crowd were restored to their parents, mostly within an hour.