To help students stay mindful of the risks that one might subject oneself to while using social media platforms, the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) recommended age-appropriate digital literacy in schools.
"Children are becoming vulnerable and many incidents of child trafficking, child marriage, child abuse and child pornography have been happening after traffickers take to the internet to dupe them," WBCPCR Chairperson Tulika Das expressed on the sidelines of a event to observe State Child Protection Day in partnership with UNICEF in Darjeeling, West Bengal, on Friday, June 28, stated a report by PTI.
This comes in the background of an increase in online child abuse cases, shared a top official.
It is vital that unnecessary sharing of pictures and personal information on the internet should be avoided because it comes with its pitfalls by incorporating it into school curriculum, opined Das.
"The traffickers and other unscrupulous persons use fake identities on social media platforms to lure children into their traps," she said, according to a UNICEF release.
"We will recommend digital literacy to be included in the school curriculum and taught in a child-friendly way to safeguard them when they study or play or make friends on the internet," the WBCPCR chairperson said.
Chief of UNICEF in West Bengal, Prabhat Kumar, requested youngsters to be aware and cautious when using the World Wide Web.
"You must think before posting, sharing and accepting any pictures, information or data on the internet. Always inform your friends or relatives or police or authorities when you find someone being a victim of cyber bullying," he said.
