Incidents of violations of Child Rights are common in most parts of India. Even today there are children forced to work, forced to marry, children who do not have adequate shelter and are deprived of education amidst various issues of child protection. As part of our efforts in promoting child rights and their safety, Sarva Seva Sangh, Pune, an organization working with children at risk, conducted two awareness sessions on child rights and protection for the Government Railway Police (GRP) on 27th March 2018. The first session was at the GRP Divisional Head Quarters, Pune, which was participated by 60 GRP personnel from Pune, Miraj and Ahmad Nagar including Dr. Prabhakar Budhavant (Superintend of Police), Mr. Tushar Patil (ASP), and Mr. Dabde (Dy.SP). The second session was in the GRP station at the Pune railway station, participated by more than 20 GRP personnel.
The sessions were based on Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act 2015. The definition of child according to the Act, the functions of Juvenile Justice Board and Child Welfare Committee, use of child friendly terms, being sensitive to the problems children face, respecting the dignity of children, the importance one’s attitudinal change towards children etc. were discussed during the session. The participants interacted by raising questions, seeking clarifications and sharing their experiences. They also raised certain concerns like lack of care homes in Pune for mentally challenged children and psychologically disturbed women and lack of personnel to escort children who need care and protection. The interest and involvement of Dr. Budhavant (SP) as well as Mr. Patil (ASP) during the session were commendable.
BY: Fr. Mathew Korattiyil
SVD INM