A 12-year-old boy, who had left his home in Nanded district of Maharashtra and reached Nashik in an express train, was reunited with his family, police said on Friday.?

According to police, the boy was addicted to mobile phone games.

"The boy from Raher village in Naigaon tehsil of Nanded had gone missing. His father had lodged a complaint with the local police, following which an alert was sent to the railway police stations in all districts to help trace the minor. Nashik Road railway police started checking all trains coming from Nanded to Nashik. A photograph of the boy was posted on the railway police's WhatsApp group also and search was launched," an official said.

When the Nanded-Mumbai Tapovan Express reached Nashik Road railway station on Thursday, police constable Vijay Kapile checked the train. He spotted some children disembarking from the train, although one of them was hiding his face, he said.

When Kapile stopped the boy and asked why he was alone, the boy said that his relatives were standing outside the station.

However, during a probe later, it came to light that the boy had reached Nashik from Nanded in Tapovan Express without a ticket. The police then took him into confidence and informed their counterparts in Nanded.

On being informed, his father reached Nashik and took the boy into his custody on Thursday, police said, adding that the minor was addicted to some mobile phone games like Free Fire.?