BAITADI: As many as 206 women and children have been rescued in the last three years from Jhulaghat, the western border transit point between Nepal and India in Baitadi district.

These women and children were rescued while they were being taken to India on various pretexts, In-charge of the Jhulaghat-based Border Police Post, Sub Inspector Umesh Kumar Pal said.

According to Pal, 60 persons including 23 women and 27 children were rescued in fiscal year 2015/16, and 73 people including 24 women and 40 children in fiscal year 2016/17, while 87 individuals including 17 women and 70 children were rescued in fiscal year 2017/18.

Most of the children from the far-western part of the country drop out of school and go to India to work due to the poor economic condition of their parents. "On occasions, we have stopped many children in school uniform trying to cross the border to India," Sub Inspector Pal said.

The police have been stopping the children trying to cross the border into India in view of the risk of them being trafficked.

It is said that a large number of children go to India for work during their school holidays to earn money to pay their school fees. The age of the rescued children is in the range from 12 years to 18 years.

Besides children from Baitadi, majority of the children rescued from Jhulaghat border transit are from Dadeldhura, Bajhang, Bajura, Achham, Doti, Kalikot, Humla, Mugu among other districts, according to police.