Child-abuse plaints pour in during shutdown, helpline gets over 100 calls in Kolkata

KOLKATA: The lockdown has been a tough time for children who have been subjected to physical and mental abuse at home. Childline (1098), the government helpline number, has received over 100 calls from children and teenagers in the city seeking help during this lockdown period.
As per data shared by the agency, there have been two instances of sexual abuse, eight cases of physical abuse, five cases of attempted child marriage and eight instances of emotional abuse reported between the period of March 23 and May 15 in Kolkata. Apart from this, there have been 70-odd calls from teenagers and their parents seeking food and medical attention.

“At the start of the lockdown, we had estimated there will be a sharp decline in calls as kids would mostly stay at home, safe with their parents. But contrary to our estimates, there has been a steady flow of calls. More than two or three cases of child harassment are being reported almost every day, which is very scary,” said an official of Childline’s unit in Kolkata.
According to sources, the two instances of sexual abuse on two 13-year-old girls were reported from Garfa and Pachasayar areas. “In the first case, a father was accused of sexually assaulting his daughter and in the second, a neighbour was arrested for preying on a Class-VII student living next door,” said an official.
The official explained that a mistreatment is categorized as physical abuse if the abuser inflicts marks or injuries on a child during the abuse. If there are no injury marks but the child remains in a trauma, it is considered as emotional abuse. “Most instances of physical abuses took place at homes of the child where parents, relatives or even neighbours have injured children. We get alerted mostly by family members or neighbours,” said an official.
The officials said, they are equally worried about the rise in complaints of child marriages in the city.