In a bid to reduce the number of cases related to sexual abuse of minors, the Ernakulam Rural police have launched the 'Valaratte Vadathirikatte' programme to empower children against such dreaded offences in society. The school-level programme is being carried out with the assistance of the pink police units which are established for preventing crimes against women and children.
What prompted the Ernakulam Rural police to launch such an initiative is the rising number of cases registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence (POCSO) Act. As per the data, till June 1, 2022, as many as 113 POCSO cases were registered in the Ernakulam Rural police limits while in 2021 and 2020, there were 215 and 164 cases respectively.
When it comes to the state-level, the number of cases registered till June 1, 2022 was 2,175 whereas, in 2021 and 2020, the numbers stood at 3,559 and 3,056, respectively.
According to Ernakulam Rural police chief Vivek Kumar, the programme was mooted after they carried out a study on POCSO cases registered in recent years.
"Our analysis found that in the majority of the cases, children face sexual abuse at the hands of the people close to them. Stepfathers, uncles, other relatives, neighbours, friends of parents, school teachers, tuition teachers or teachers at religious institutions often turn out to be the accused in such cases. After having such a bitter experience with their dear ones, these children find it hard to report the matter. The children undergo severe mental trauma as they won't be able to speak out and often buries it inside them which affects their future," said Vivek.
As part of the project, the Pink police units have been tasked to visit government and aided UP-level schools daily. There are three Pink police units with six to seven officials operating in the Ernakulam Rural police. After implementing the programme in government and aided schools, the police are planning to extend it to non-aided and CBSE schools.
Additional superintendent of police KM Jijimon, who is the nodal officer of the project, said that sexual offences against children are heinous crimes that put the entire society in a bad light.
"Pink police give awareness classes to girls and boys in schools. The students are also given counselling if required. They educate the students on 'good touch' and 'bad touch' as well as things to do if someone misbehaves with them. They also encourage them to report such issues to the parents, school teachers or even the police. The police officials will also coordinate with the parents and guardians of the students for the redressal of issues," said Jijimon.
The police would be focusing on spreading awareness against sexual offences among migrant workers also. Ernakulam Rural areas have a large settlement of workers from other states. As per data, there are around 5.16 lakh migrant workers registered in the Awaz scheme of the labour department. Of this, 1.15 lakh workers are in Ernakulam district and a majority are based in Perumbavoor, Aluva and Kothamangalam stretch. "There are rising sexual offence cases among migrant workers. With the help of beat officers, we are planning to conduct awareness programmes at migrant settlements and workplaces," he said.
Number of POCSO cases in Ernakulam Rural police limit
2022 (up to June): 113
2021: 215
2020: 164
Kerala
2022 (up to June): 2175
2021: 3,559
2020: 3,056
