Swift case resolutions of missing kids: ZARRA must engage with provincial authorities: NA panel

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs recommended that Zainab Alert, Response and Recovery Agency (ZARRA) should collaborate with provincial authorities to develop effective strategies for expediting cases of missing children.

The committee met with MNA Rana Iradat Sharif Khan in the chair at the Parliament Lodges on Tuesday.

The secretary Ministry of Human Rights briefed the Standing Committee that the Section 3 of Zainab Alert Response and Recovery Act, 2020, mandates the creation of the ZARRA to ensure a prompt and effective response to address the crucial issue of child missing children.

He said that the ZARRA has established a toll-free helpline, 1099, where legal advisors and officers offer free legal assistance and coordinate administrative measures to facilitate the safe return of missing children. The secretary also informed the committee that, to date, 4,591 cases of missing children have been reported, with 3,869 cases successfully closed, while 722 cases remain open.

The committee recommended that ZARRA should collaborate with provincial authorities to develop effective strategies for expediting cases of missing children. Additionally, it emphasised the need for sensitising police departments across Pakistan to ensure the timely and regular sharing of data with the Agency.

The secretary Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs informed the committee that for the swift resolution of public grievances, it is essential to integrate the Prime Minister’s Public Affairs and Grievances Wing, Pakistan Citizen’s Portal (PCP) with the chief ministers’ grievance system and the grievance mechanisms of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK). This integration is crucial to ensure the timely and effective redressal of public concerns.

The meeting was attended by MNAs Raja Qamar ul Islam, Mahmood Bashir Virk, Naveed Aamir, Nikhat Shakeet Khan, Sahibzada Sibghatullah, Ali Muhammad and Hameed Hussain. Secretary Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, secretary Ministry of Human Rights, senior officers from PMDU and other senior officers of the ministries also attended the meeting.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025