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Red Cross to train volunteers...........Farah H Chitalwala Indian Red Cross Society (IRS) plans to train young volunteers in tracing services. The volunteers will be trained to reunite missing persons with their kin and help families identify corpses. After the November 26 attacks, the Indian Red Cross helped authorities trace the kin of dead persons. "Usually corpses are mass cremated in such situations. Our tracing cell however, assisted in finding their family members," said IRS secretary Homai Modi. The service is crucial in a city like Mumbai since many residing here have their kin staying outside or abroad. "Migrants from rural areas leave without giving families a proper mailing address. Through our networks we help locate such migrants," said IRS Family News Service co-ordinator Pooja Kukde. Although the IRS maintains a volunteer core of 12 million, only 526 personnel are trained in tracing services. "After natural calamities and the Mumbai attacks, we realised that more trained volunteers were required," said Kukde. In the coming months, IRS plans to train at least 10 volunteers in each of its 700 branches in tracing services. The three-day tracing programmes will be held at centres of the Indian Red Cross. "Our volunteers will be trained to ask relevant questions and use the tracing manual. They will also be taught to deal with local agencies and police stations that are usually involved in the process," said Kukde. The programmes will be conducted free of charge and will be open to IRS volunteers.
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