Students’ safety norms to be implemented soon

Pune: The guidelines drafted by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) to ensure the accountability of schools in cases relating to violation of child rights will soon be implemented across the country. 

While the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) is interacting with various stakeholders regarding the guidelines, they will be implemented once it is covered by the ministry.

Children’s safety in schools is a growing concern among parents all over due to the fact that reports of children facing corporal punishment or being assaulted keep surfacing every other day. The accountability of schools will try to relieve parents of their worries on the matter.

Speaking to Sakal Times, Priyank Kanoongo, Chairperson, NCPCR, said, “Last year, following the petition filed by a parent of a child victim, the Supreme Court had ordered guidelines for fixing accountability of the school management in the matter of safety of children studying in private and government schools. The draft model guidelines have been made by the NCPCR.”

The NCPCR has developed a comprehensive manual on the safety and security of children in schools. The manual is a compilation of various existing guidelines, circulars, notifications, government orders on safety and security related to issues in schools.

Proposed Guidelines

• While the government schools need to conduct regular meetings with the School Management Committees (SMCs), the private schools need to hold periodic meetings with the Parents Teachers’ Associations (PTAs), to ensure the implementation of child safety guidelines.
• In case of non-compliance of the recommendations of PTA by the school management, the PTA should approach the Block Education Officer. The SMCs can go to local authorities in case of government schools.
• After enquiry, the schools may face fines, and on further non-compliance, the government might be recommended to take over the school management.
• The NCPCR and SCPCRs, as the case may be, shall be responsible for monitoring the implementation of the guidelines.

Portal

• Kanoongo also stated that the NCPCR is making a centralised portal to converge and monitor the child rights legislation in all states under one umbrella. Under this, implementation of the central legislation for the protection of child rights, at the respective state levels, will be monitored.