Dimapur, December 8 (MExN): Workshop on National Initiative for Child Protection (NICP) for teachers was organised at DC Conference Hall Dimapur on December 7 with teachers from various schools in Dimapur. The main purpose of the workshop was dissemination and sensitization of CHILDLINE 1098, Juvenile justice Act, various child protection issues and scenario of children in Dimapur and Right to Education Act.
The workshop was inaugurated and graced by Dr. Kadambari Bhagat, IAS SDO(C) Dimapur. Dr. Kadambari stressed that as stakeholders it is our responsibility to protect the children, as it is their constitutional and legal right. She further urged all the participants to share and spread the message at all levels and be a resource person and to use CHILDLINE 1098 to avail the services for children so that such institutions can be more effecting in reaching out to the vulnerable children.
CHILDLINE Dimapur, Nodal director, Subonenba Longkumer presented on CHILDLINE 1098, which is a project under the Ministry of Women and Child Development under the aegis of Government of India and is a National 24 hour free emergency helpline (1098) and outreach service for children in need of care and protection, its history and background. It aims to reach out to the most marginalised children and provides intervention of shelter, medical, repatriation, rescue, death related emotional support and guidance.
Various categories of children such as street children, child addicts, labourers, disaster affected, HIV/Aids infected children, and disabled children are dealt by CHILDLINE citing some of the case studies of CHILDLINE. He mentioned that children who are kept as domestic labours are mostly ill-treated by the owners through physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse etc and several children have been rescued by CHILDLINE Dimapur from such situations.
He highlighted on the Juvenile Justice Act (JJAct) and the relevant statutory provisions, composition and structures and listed the rights of the children according to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Categorizing the children under the JJAct he cited several cases of children in need of care and protection and children in conflict with law in the context of Dimapur.
Further, he presented on the powers and functions of the Child Welfare committee and the Juvenile Justice Board, which preserves the best interest of the child. He requested all the participants who were teachers to be a medium or channel to reach out to the vulnerable children who are in distress and needs help and to actively join hands and support CHILDLINE by being a concern adult and an agent of dissemination at all levels and use CHILDLINE services by dialing 1098 in any case of children who needs care and protection.
Further on K. Ela, Collab director CHILDLINE presented on the Right to Education Act. Ela highlighted on the basic provisions of the Act and vision of school under it. She further stressed on recognizing the child rights under the RTE Act. She added that despite the enactment and implementation of the Act and which in its background every children has the right to education but still many children are still out of school inspite of various efforts from Government, NGO’s, Unions and sectors out of choice or beyond choice. She also presented on the World’s 10 most friendly nations for children under Child development index where Japan is ranked as the Top child friendly nation in the world whereas India is ranked 112 among the 141 countries.
During the session the teachers expressed grievances and problems due to the implementation of the RTE Act. They mentioned that the students knowing the merits of the Act have started taking advantage/misuse of the Act as they know that they are being protected under the Act. They usually bunk their classes and do not study as they know that they cannot fail nor can they be punished by their teachers. Moreover different schools follow different systems though they are supposed to follow the same system due to the present state of confusion. Some of the teachers also expressed that under this Act teachers are learning more but they are not sure as to whether the students are learning and also some of the teachers favours and preferred the former system rather than the present.
Ela also raised a question in the conclusion and urged the participants that ‘whether we could make Nagaland the best child friendly State in India?’
