JAP aims at weaning children away from drug abuse: NCPCR

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), on behalf of the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, organized a Regional Symposium entitled ‘Vatsal Bharat’ for the North Eastern States on child protection, child safety, and child welfare.

The event was organised on Saturday at Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati. Dr. Munjpara Mahendrabhai, Minister of State for Women and Child Development, and Ayush, Priyank Kanoongo, Chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), Sanjeev Kumar Chadha, Additional Secretary, Women and Child Development, Indra Mallo, Joint Secretary, WCD, Rupali Bannerji, Member Secretary, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), along with other dignitaries, were present on the occasion. The participating States in the symposium were Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya, and Tripura. The programme is part of a series of regional symposiums to be held across the country to raise awareness and outreach about child protection, safety, and welfare issues.

Dr. Munjapara Mahendrabhai highlighted the objectives of “Mission Vatsalya” with respect to providing the security net of statutory and service delivery structures to children in difficult circumstances. Based on the direction of the Prime Minister, a mechanism was created to wean the children away from drug abuse in the vicinity of schools, high schools, and colleges. The ministry has brought about significant changes in juvenile justice, care, and protection of children. This will help provide better-quality services to the children in need of protection.

Some of the important factors, like foster care, special education, sponsorship, etc., are taken into consideration. He said every child in India is protected and safe because the people who have the responsibility regarding the protection of our children in every street and every locality are dedicated to the concern of those children in every situation. He also said that with the implementation of Mission Vatsal in mission mode, an improvement was seen in the implementation of the Juvenile Justice Act and the functioning of CCIs, as a result of which common people and children have benefited. Priyank Kanoongo, Chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), addressed the people, stating that NCPCR is continuously monitoring with the aim of complete eradication of social evils like child marriage, illegal trafficking, consumption of narcotic drugs, etc. In order to address the critical issues of drug and substance abuse among children in the North East region of India, the NE Cell of the NCPCR Pilot on Prevention of Drug and Substance Abuse and Illicit Trafficking among Children 18 started district-level workshops. He also said that the Joint Action Plan (JAP), an initiative of NCPCR, aims to wean children away from drug abuse and to stop selling drugs in surrounding areas of schools, educational institutions, and childcare institutions through convergent actions in a time-bound manner, as well as adopting a holistic approach to address the issue of drug and substance use amongst the children in the country. With the help of a tracking mechanism, NCPCR and SCPCR have maximised their role in monitoring cases of child sexual abuse.

Under the initiative of Mission Vatsalya, a significant enhancement was introduced in 2014: sponsorships for foster care were raised to Rs. 2000 (earlier Rs. 500), and after-care allowance was elevated from Rs. 750 to the current amount of Rs. 4000. Moreover, a comprehensive expansion of the State Child Protection Society, State Adoption Agency, Juvenile Justice Board, and Child Welfare Committees has been prioritized in every district.

The event was attended by prospective adoptive parents as well, three of whom shared their experiences about the ease of adoption procedures brought about by the recent changes. Through this event, the successful interventions under Mission Vatsalya for extending sponsorship, foster care, and aftercare support to Children in Vulnerable Situations and Distress and Support, Advocacy, and Mental Health Interventions (SAMVAD) by NIMHANS for the psycho-social care and mental health of children in distress were also shared. In the symposium, Women and Child Development Department officials, representatives from Child Welfare Committees (CWCs), Juvenile Justice board Members (JJBs), Anganwadi workers, and other officials associated with child rights protection mechanisms were present as participants. The programme is part of a series of regional symposiums to be held across the country to raise awareness and outreach about child protection, child safety, and child welfare issues.

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