Child Protection Committees will be constituted in all 5,633 schools across Delhi by the end of July as part of a city-wide push to strengthen child safety, Lieutenant Governor (LG) Taranjit Singh Sandhu and Chief Minister (CM) Rekha Gupta decided during a high-level review meeting on Monday.
The meeting at Raj Niwas reviewed the implementation of programmes being carried out under the month-long Child Protection Month campaign, with officials from the Education Department, Delhi Police and the Department of Women and Child Development directed to complete all assigned tasks within stipulated timelines.
According to officials, Child Protection Committees have already been set up in all Delhi government schools, and the initiative will now be extended to all government-aided institutes, MCD, NDMC, Delhi Cantonment Board and private schools, taking the total coverage to 5,633 schools.
The Education Department informed the meeting that a comprehensive student safety checklist, based on the guidelines of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, is being implemented across all schools.
Teachers and school staff are also being trained under the provisions of the POCSO Act, while students are receiving awareness sessions on safe and unsafe touch, gender sensitisation, personal boundaries and self-defence.
Delhi Police said it has intensified child safety initiatives covering schoolchildren, missing children, children in parks, sports complexes, JJ clusters, orphanages and child care institutions. An Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police has been designated as the nodal officer for POCSO-related monitoring in every district.
The Department of Women and Child Development outlined plans for a large-scale awareness campaign on the POCSO Act that will cover Anganwadi-cum-Palna centres, linked Anganwadi centres and all Child Care Institutions in the Capital. The campaign will use awareness videos, mobile vans and printed material to educate children, parents and communities.
The LG and CM directed that child protection measures should become a permanent feature of institutions rather than remain confined to July.
They also asked departments to ensure Educational and Vocational Guidance Counsellors are available in every school, complete the training of master trainers during the month, implement a standard operating procedure for handling POCSO cases and conduct joint inspections of schools by teams comprising parents, education officials, Delhi Police and school heads.
The meeting further directed Delhi Police to ensure prompt and coordinated action in all POCSO cases and called for counselling and rehabilitation of first-time juvenile offenders to facilitate their reintegration into society.
“There is no room for complacency in ensuring a safe and sensitive environment for every child,” the LG said during the review.
Gupta said the Delhi government aims to build a robust and permanent child protection system through close coordination among departments, ensuring that every child in the Capital grows up in a safe, secure and dignified environment.
