Jalgaon: A national bravery award winning boy along with his brother are missing from Jalgaon district. He was honoured by PM Narendra Modi in 2016. The police have been directed to make a special unit to track them down.
As per a news report by Deccan Herald, there are speculations that the two brothers Nilesh (12) and Ganpat (7) are kidnapped from Mutainagar of Jalgaon.
A complaint was lodged on Friday evening in Muktainagar police station by their parents Revaram Bhil and Sundarbai, who work as labourers in farms. They also informed the police that another Brother Nikesh (10) is safe at home.
According to the registered complaint, when the couple reached home on Tuesday after work, everything was normal. Nilesh went missing on Wednesday and Ganpat went missing on Thursday.
“Police has registered a case and investigations are underway. All efforts are being made to trace them,” senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse, an MLA from Muktainagar and former Revenue Minister informed.
Inspector Vandana Sonawane, the investigation officer said that “we have published appeals to the public in the local media today, put up posters with photos of both the boys at various public places, markets, bus and railway stations.”
The sources said that this is not the first time that Nilesh went missing. “Nilesh had gone out of home twice, but for one or two days and had returned,” the sources have also added: “What is a matter of concern that this time two brothers are missing.” Besides, both had disappeared on different days – and this has led to fears that they could have been kidnapped. “We are also looking at various angles including rivalry involving the family or ransom or they went missing or they went into jungles and could not trace the route back,” the sources said.
Nilesh had received the General National Bravery Award in January 2016 on the occasion of Republic Day celebrations from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for saving a village boy from drowning in a water tank. The National Bravery Award scheme, initiated by the Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW), award the children in the age group of 6-18 years for exemplary acts of bravery.
The awards consist of five categories, including the Bharat Award, Sanjay Chopra Award, Geeta Chopra Award, Bapu Gaidhani Award and the General National Bravery Awards. The awardees receive a medal, a certificate, and cash prize. Bharat Award winners get a gold medal, while the others receive silver. The cash amount ranges from Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000.