E-Paper
Child abuse victims: Stronger support system for survivors on the anvil in U.P.
The support system will be in the form of a team of support persons who will hand-hold the victims and their parents throughout the process of investigation during the case.
The Bal Kalyan Vibhag (under the women and child development department) is in the process of building a stronger support system for child survivors of abuse and assault, and their families. The support system will be in the form of a team of support persons who will hand-hold the victims and their parents throughout the process of investigation during the case.
The support system is in keeping with section 30 of the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act. The provision dictates the appointment of a support person to provide the child with all possible help during the investigation and legal proceedings.
“There are about 13 to 14 positions open for Lucknow,” said Vikas Singh, district probation officer (DPO). “Since, in the state capital, we get the highest number of monthly cases, the biggest recruitment is happening here. We get about 60-65 cases a month, and as per the POCSO Act we can only assign five cases to one support person,” he added.
While a few positions will be filled by some previous recruits, around 10 positions are awaiting fresh recruits. The DPO has advertised and invited applications for these positions. These recruitments are taking place across the state, and will be open for two weeks starting Thursday, January 4.
The applicants must be residents of the district that they are applying from and will be remunerated per case. This compensation will be made in three installments at various points of the case’s progress.
They will be allowed to remain on a case for three years, after which an extension will be given based on feedback from the child. These employees will be non-governmental and due to their personal contact with the victim, provide a much stronger basis for the processing of POCSO cases.
The recruitment is partially necessitated following the shift of charge of child emergency and rescue operations to the UP Police, several support workers are no longer working.
