Date:13/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/13/stories/2008071350190100.htm

Front Page

Family News Service solves first case

T. Saravanan

Madurai unit of Red Cross traces missing person in a week
Students to be involved to strengthen network

MADURAI: The Indian Red Cross Society (IRC), Madurai unit, has successfully traced a person found missing in Sri Lanka and reunited him with his family members. Thanks to the Family News Service, an international tracing network established by the IRC.

For M. Ramachandran, a Sri Lankan refugee settled in Madurai a decade back, life was going smooth till he received an SOS phone call from his daughter-in-law in Sri Lanka.

“We have two sons and two daughters. Our eldest son, R. Rajadurai, is married and works in a restaurant in Colombo. On that day, our daughter-in-law Dharani called us to find Rajadurai, who has been missing for days. We approached the IRC, Madurai unit. Within a week they traced my son, who was languishing in a police lockup. He was immediately released and reached home in Vellavatha,” R. Balasoundari, the mother, narrated the incident.

M. Gopalakrishnan, one of the district coordinators of the network, says, “This is the first case handled by the Madurai unit after forming this network. Immediately after receiving the complaint, we gathered all information such as identity marks and recent photograph of the individual found missing. The information collected was sent to the State branch through courier service and from there facsimiled to the central office in New Delhi, which passed it on to its network in Sri Lanka.”

V. Velusamy, secretary, IRC, Madurai, said, “We have planned to train more persons, involving college students, to strengthen our network.” The network has turned its attention on the next complaint referred to Madurai from Dubai of a missing person in Aruppukkottai.