Losing a child is one of the most terrifying experiences a family can face. Even a few minutes of confusion in a crowded street, market, hospital, shrine, bus stop, or festival can lead to separation. On the other hand, sometimes we, as bystanders, come across a child who appears lost, frightened, or unable to tell where they belong. In both cases, knowing how to report a lost child in Pakistan is crucial to ensuring the child’s safety and reuniting them with their family as quickly as possible.
In Pakistan, the Mera Pyara initiative, operating under Punjab Safe Cities Authority (PSCA), serves as Pakistan’s largest child safety center, working exclusively to protect, identify, and reunify lost or unidentified children with their families. Understanding how to report responsibly can help you play a role in safeguarding a child's life, dignity, and future.
Why Immediate Action Matters
The first few hours after separation are extremely important. Delaying the report or waiting to “see if the child finds their way back” can increase risk. Quick reporting allows authorities and child safety organizations to trace routes, check surveillance footage, and begin data matching. When action is taken early, chances of a successful reunion increase significantly.
Whether you are the family or someone who found a child, urgency and calm coordination are key.
Where to Report a Missing or Found Child in Pakistan
If you are worried about how to report a lost child in Pakistan, these official and safe channels should be contacted immediately:
- Call at Punjab 15 and press 3
- Whatsapp Mera Pyara at 0309-0000015
Mera Pyara plays a specialized role. It is a 24/7 child reunification center equipped with surveillance, secure documentation, social outreach, and legal verification systems that ensure responsible and safe reunification.
How Mera Pyara Handles Cases
Every case begins with careful and secure data recording. The child’s name (if known), physical features, approximate age, city clues, family descriptions, and any memory fragments are documented sensitively. This information is securely saved in a national reunification database.
If the child remembers their hometown or region, the Mera Pyara team prepares a short interview video, respectfully capturing only the essential details shared by the child. This video is then shared on Social Media. I.e Facebook & TikTok etc
The post is paid-boosted in the child’s likely hometown area to maximize visibility among residents and families.
Many reunions happen simply because someone recognizes the child in a boosted local video.
Once a family claims the child, the case does not end immediately.
Reunification happens through a court-guided identity verification process. This ensures the child is handed only to their real and rightful family, protecting the child from trafficking, fraud, or unsafe custody situations.
The aim is not just reunion — but safe, legal, and responsible reunion.
What Makes Mera Pyara Pakistan’s Largest Child Safety Center
Mera Pyara distinguishes itself not only through advanced technology, trained officers, and a human-first philosophy, but also through its unmatched physical outreach across Punjab. Dedicated Mera Pyara are operating nearly in every district, forming the largest child safety and reunification network in Pakistan.
This network is strengthened by direct collaboration with every police station in Punjab, ensuring rapid verification, secure case handling, and immediate field support whenever a child is reported missing or found. Because the system operates 24/7, families do not face delays, long travel, or bureaucratic hurdles — help is always close, responsive, and coordinated.
No other organization in the country operates at this scale, which is widely Mera Pyara recognized as Pakistan’s largest child safety center in Pakistan. And it remains a truly community-rooted and system-supported safety net for vulnerable children and their families.
The center does not simply document cases — it actively searches, follows clues, expands outreach, and ensures every case is pursued until closure.
Success Stories: When Families Find Their Beloved One Again
In just one year since it was established in July 2024, thousands of children have returned home through Mera Pyara’s compassionate and sustained efforts. Each reunion carries a mix of relief, tears, and gratitude that words cannot fully express.
Some children lived months in shelters, unable to remember home, until a short interview video helped someone recognize their voice. There are parents who searched countless cities before finally seeing their child’s face online. There are elderly guardians, siblings, and relatives who believed the child was lost forever — and then hope returned.
These stories are not just reunions.
They are restorations of families, identities, and childhood itself.
How You Can Help When You See a Lost Child
If you encounter a child who appears lost or alone:
- Stay with the child — do not leave them unattended.
- Speak to them gently and calmly, without pressure.
- Do not share the child’s photo publicly without guidance.
- Report immediately on Punjab 15 or Whatsapp Mera Pyara at 0309-0000015.
A small act of responsibility can protect a life.
A Shared Responsibility
Knowing how to report a lost child in Pakistan is not only for parents. It is knowledge every citizen should carry. A society becomes safer not only through laws and systems, but through shared empathy. Every child deserves protection, identity, and belonging.
The next time you cross paths with a child who looks lost, confused, or scared:
Do not walk away.
Stop.
Ask.
Help.
Report.
Your act could be the reason a child finds their way back home again.