In 76 seconds, girl scales 14-foot wall to escape from UP shelter home

A 15-year-old inmate showed a rare presence of mind, athleticism and courage to scale a 14-foot-wall in just 1 minutes and 16 seconds and escape from a state government-run shelter home for girls at Moti Nagar in Lucknow on Sunday, the CCTV footage of her act showed on Monday. The girl, whose escape also exposed the laxity of the authorities at the shelter, has not been found ever since.

She was apparently unhappy over being lodged in the shelter, an official said.

The incident took place when only three staff members were present to look after 75 inmates of the shelter home, a member of the state commission for protection of child rights said.

The girl from Basti district in eastern Uttar Pradesh escaped just four days after she was lodged at the shelter home on December 18, officials said.

The CCTV footage showed she was on the first floor of the shelter home at 7.03am on Sunday.

After ensuring that no one was around, she climbed on to a washbasin and then struggled for almost a minute to reach the roof by first clambering on to a ledge.

The footage also showed her roaming on the roof of the shelter home and then climbing down onto the roof of the adjacent house.

No one noticed the girl escaping from the shelter home and climbing down from the roof of the adjacent house constructed by Lucknow Municipal Corporation, locals said.

“We did not notice any movement. There is a small structure outside the house that may have helped her to climb down from the roof,” said Lalit Yadav, a resident.

Earlier, the Railway Police had rescued the girl from a train in Basti and produced her before the child welfare committee (CWC). The girl was then brought to the shelter home and lodged there.

Officials claimed she had escaped when she was still being counselled four days after being brought to the shelter.

Although the counsellor was not available for comment as she was on leave, a staff member said, “She (the girl) wanted to go back to Basti and carry on work (begging and rag-picking).”

Meanwhile, police traced her home in Basti on the basis of the details provided by the girl.

“She did not want to go home, but wasn’t happy to stay here either. She even brawled with the caretaker other day. As per the police, she escaped from her home several times,” said a government official, who wished not to be named.

Preeti Verma, member of the state commission for protection of child rights, along with another member Shuchita Chaturvedi inspected the shelter home on Monday.

“It was a lapse on the part of staff here. They should have been more vigilant,” said Verma, adding, “There were three staff members present at the time of the incident.”

Vishesh Gupta, chairperson of the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, inspected the same home recently and reviewed the arrangements last week. “I had suggested fencing off the campus, besides more vigil to ensure the safety of girls,” he said.

The Moti Nagar police station has received a complaint and a police official there said a search was on for the girl.