A workshop on sensitising officials to children’s rights and provisions of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act was conducted on Monday with a plea for greater coordination among different departments to help secure children their rights.
B.G. Dinesh, Member Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, said that be it child marriage, child labour, sexual abuse of children etc., amounts to violation of children’s rights and it was imperative to protect them.
The workshop also focused on Mission Vatsalya to create a safe environment for children to grow and thrive, and Prohibition of Child Marriage Act and was jointly conducted by the Directorate of Child Rights, Department of Women and Child Development, District Child Protection unit and district police.
Mr. Dinesh said it was imperative to prevent abuse or violation of children’s rights and the officials were sensitised to show empathy whenever such issues come to their notice irrespective of the work pressure and jurisdictional issues.
He said despite the enactment of various laws violation of children’s rights and abuse of children was still prevalent while there was insensitivity on the part of officials to take cognisance of such violations and book a case.
Mr. Dinesh cited the example of a child marriage where the police in Periyapatana cited jurisdictional issues and directed the Child Welfare Committee to approach Hunsur police as the temple where the marriage took place, did not come under their jurisdiction. If such incidents take place despite undergoing sensitisation programmes then it is worrisome, he added pointing out that registration of FIR cannot be refused citing jurisdictional issues as per various judgement of the Supreme Court.
Karnataka State Child Rights Protection Commission member S. Manju said today’s children were tomorrow’s citizens and hence it was imperative to nurture them properly and called upon the officials to be proactive in implementing the law to prevent abuse of children.
Senior officials from the district administration, Additional Superintendent of Police B.N. Nandini, Deputy Commissioner of Police S. Jahnavi and others were present.
