Grassroot level committees being formed for safety of girl child

As two minor girls were murdered in the district recently, the administration has accorded a thrust to ensuring safety and protection of children especially girls by involving local body representatives at the grassroot level.

The district police have created a separate Whatsapp group for all stakeholders involved in child protection and rehabilitation with the objective of ensuring better coordination while dealing with issues concerning minors.

The committees being formed in all village panchayats in the district involving the village panchayat president concerned would look into issues relating to child safety, protection and problems faced by the minors for effective and timely action. The 10-member panel would also have a teacher, representatives from a non-governmental organisation, District Child Protection Unit and self help groups.

The committees would flag issues concerning children and any offence committed against them to the district administration immediately for timely action, said District Collector P. Uma Maheswari. The committee members would be sensitised to programmes and schemes being implemented by the State government and Centre aimed at the welfare of children so as to increase awareness among them. Similar committees were proposed to be constituted at the block-level also.

The District Social Welfare Officer has been entrusted with the task of chalking out a plan of action pertaining to the frequency of the meetings of the committees and submit a report to the district administration.

Recently, a girl child was murdered in Gandharvakottai police station limits and another minor girl was raped and murdered in Embal village. In both cases, the accused were arrested by special teams constituted to probe the cases. In the Gandharvakottai case, the prime accused was the father of the girl and in the offence reported at Embal village the accused was from the same village and was known to the victim.

A police officer said creation of the Whatsapp group by the district police containing all officials involved in child safety and protection was a sequel to the two murders so as to bring about better inter-departmental coordination while dealing with issues pertaining to minors.

The Whatsapp group includes a senior police officer in the rank of an Additional Superintendent of Police, Inspectors of All Women Police Stations in the district, Inspector of Anti Child Trafficking Unit, District Child Protection Officer, Child Welfare Committee chairman, representative of Childline and Child Welfare Officers. Any information relating to crime against children or connected with their safety would be known to all stakeholders for prompt action and rehabilitation if needed through the Whatsapp group, the officer further said.

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