The school education department has a standard operating procedure (SOP) or government order (GO) for almost everything that can go wrong in schools – caste discrimination, sexual harassment or safety lapses.

However, many of these circulars overlap or contradict each other, are rarely thought through in terms of practicality, and without a monitoring mechanism, are simply added to the growing pile of such documents that serve no purpose, stated a report by The New Indian Express.

From banning caste markers to guidelines on preventing sexual abuse, the responses have largely been reactive, fragmented and incident-specific. Tamil Nadu is yet to adopt a comprehensive child protection policy for its schools and in the absence of a unified framework, headmasters, teachers, and even education officials are unsure of what policies exist and how they should be implemented.

In just the past three months, the department issued a GO on action against Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) offenders, a set of guidelines to curb caste-based discrimination and an SOP to protect girl students during sports events. Last December, after backlash over a controversial speech by a motivational speaker in a government school, a separate GO was released to regulate external speakers.

Taking a subtle dig at this approach, the Tamil Nadu Child Rights Watch (TNCRW), in a letter to school education director, following the latest guidelines to protect girls in sports from sexual abuse said, “This guideline, which appears to be the 101st in a series of instructions and circulars related to children, reflects the department’s concern for child well-being.”

It also noted that there is no centralised repository where these documents can be accessed by schools or even the directorate.

“We have lost track of how many issues we are expected to raise awareness about during morning assemblies, from tobacco prevention and sexual abuse to caste discrimination and road safety. There are several guidelines we are supposed to implement in coordination with other departments, especially in cases related to the POCSO Act. However, there has hardly been any coordination meetings held to ensure this,” said a headmaster from Sivagangai.

“There are no proper guidelines to monitor implementation. As days pass, these documents are often forgotten, both by those who issue them and those meant to follow them,” said Thenkanal Isaimozhi of Palli Kalvi Pathukappu Iyakkam.

Activists also pointed out that many such documents are issued without consulting the departments actually responsible for implementation. Several of these guidelines misidentify the role of the District Child Protection Officer (DCPO), who functions under the Social Welfare Department. The GO on action against POCSO offenders refers to a ‘Child Welfare Protection Officer,’ a designation that does not exist.

Officials in the Social Welfare Department also said they were unaware of the order, even though it directs DCPOs, who fall under their jurisdiction, to investigate and submit reports in POCSO cases.

The TNCRW letter also flagged the lack of stakeholder consultation, pointing out that civil society organisations, child protection experts, healthcare professionals and law enforcement agencies are rarely involved in drafting these policies. It called for a multi-stakeholder consultation involving teachers, headmasters, child rights groups, police, health professionals, counsellors, SMC members, and education experts to develop a state-wide child protection policy.

“The policy should address all forms of abuse – physical, sexual, emotional, neglect, and exploitation. It must comprehensively cover every aspect of child safety, including a model code of conduct for children, and be developed in consultation with all relevant stakeholders,” said A Devaneyan, a child rights activist, as per the report by The New Indian Express.

Such a policy must mandate the formation of child protection committees in every school, periodic training for staff, annual safety audits, clear grievance redressal systems, and participation of children and parents in safety planning, the TNCRW letter said. In contrast, states like Karnataka and Kerala have already moved forward with formulation of such policies.

A senior school education department official, who The New Indian Express reached out to, did not comment on the issue.