Delhi offers no shelter for mentally challenged girls: CWC member

There are no shelter homes for mentally challenged girls in Delhi, a member of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) said on Saturday.

There are no shelter homes for mentally challenged girls in Delhi, a member of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) said on Saturday.

HT Image

"There are no shelter homes for mentally challenged girls in the national capital. We need to look into this matter," Charu Makkar, a member of the CWC said, in the course of a day-long discussion on government schemes for underprivileged children at India International Centre.

Makkar said that cases of assault on such girls, who are especially vulnerable, were reported from both within and outside homes, and added that there was thus special need to offer such girls shelter. "There is a serious need to curb their problem," she said.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Sanjay Bhatia said that the police force was committed to the protection of every child.

There are several schemes initiated by Delhi Police for helping such girls develop their skills, Bhatia said, adding that other agencies too should help develop the skills of underprivileged children.

The discussion was organised by Childhood Enhancement Through Training and Action (CHETNA), an NGO devoted to the cause of street and working children, which is making an assessment of government-sponsored schemes for underprivileged children at the state and national levels.