INDIAN ORPHAN USES GOOGLE EARTH TO FIND HIS FAMILY

How Google Earth was used to track down an Indian orphan’s family

We have all been touched by stories of children who went missing and were never found or those who went missing and were later found murdered, like the cases of Nurin Jazlin Jazimin or, more recently, Nurul Nadirah. In the former case, we had the bloggers initiated NURIN Alert which was for the swift mobilization of assistance from the community in locating a missing child.

Manpower mobilization, such as Nurin Alert or police nation-wide manhunt, are laudable noble efforts. But have we forgotten technology and what it can do in locating missing people? True, NURIN Alert made full use of computer technology but it was still dependent on human will and effort. There are other pieces of technology that can do the work for you at the touch of a button, and they are found to be equally, if not far more, effective in locating missing persons. A notable example is one software with which computer users are familiar and which we can get for free: Google Earth.

Here's a true touching story of how an Indian orphan uses Google Earth to find his family 25 years after getting lost as a child. 25 years is of course a very long time, but remember, Google Earth was released only in 2005 and a more stable version came in October 2011. So the question is: Have we all thought about Google Earth? If we have, did it bring about the desired effect? Computer knowledge is one thing, using it to good effect is another matter. True, the technology of Google Earth may not be the perfect solution but at least it helps people like Saroo Brierley to find and enjoy a happy ending.

Saroo Brierley, Indian Orphan, Uses Google Earth to Find His Family
By Albert Samaha, SF Weekly, 13 March 2012.

Happy ending: Saroo Brierley, 30, spent years searching for the family from whom he was separated 25 years ago. Picture: Sam Rosewarne. Source: The Mercury.

There is now evidence showing that Google Earth is good for more than just pictures of naked rooftop sunbathers and Frenchmen urinating on gardens.

An Indian man named Saroo Brierley used the Bay Area tech giant's satellite image program to find his home and reunite with his family 25 years after getting lost as a child.

It all started back in 1987 when the 5-year-old Brierley got separated from his brother while at a train station in Khandwa - a town in central India. India Express reported last month that the boy got onto a train and fell asleep; and the train was traveling in the opposite direction from where he was supposed to be going. Ten hours and 900 miles later Brierley woke up in Kolkata, which is on the eastern edge of the country.

Things only got worse from there.

The Mercury, which dubs itself "The Voice of Tasmania," described what happened next as if it was a rising action of an Old Testament parable: "For a month, he tried to find his way back, almost drowning in the River Ganges and nearly being abducted by a man who intended to sell him as a slave."

Brierley, who eventually ended up at an orphanage, was adopted by Tasmanian parents, and worked at their industrial supplies business. He later learned that his brother whom he was with at the train station was found dead on the railway tracks.

At the age of 20, Brierley began searching for his natural family, using his dogged persistence, a ridiculously keen memory, and a one-two punch of Google and Facebook.

He spent years scouring Google Earth images of India's towns until he spotted the one that matched the memories he had from when he was a child - the town of Ganesh Talai.

"Using Google Earth, I spent so many hours zooming in and out looking for something I recognised," Brierley, who has the surname of his foster parents, told the Mercury.

Reunion: Saroo Brierley with his mum Kamla, who had searched for him since he went missing. Source: The Mercury.

With the name of his hometown in hand, he tracked the locals on Facebook, e-mailed them, compiling enough clues to narrow his search. With all this new information, he travelled to Ganesh Talai and dug around until he found his natural family.

His mother later revealed to him that fortune tellers had told the family they would reunite.

It remains unclear whether Google will be able to monetize these sorts of happy endings.

[Source: SF Weekly. Edited. Some links and images added.]