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National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) chief Priyank Kanoongo submitted to President Droupadi Murmu the special report on child protection in the state of West Bengal.
According to the report, there were deliberate violations of the legal procedures by the West Bengal government. "The Special Report outlines deliberate violations of the legal procedures by the West Bengal Government and its officials, who are themselves entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the rights of children and working in their best interests," it said. The report said that during the course of multiple inquiries, the state and district administrations have been noncooperative and rampantly disregarding the laws. "While fulfilling its responsibilities as laid down under the above-stated acts, the Commission comes across different kinds of violence against children and efforts are made to redress the matter with cooperation from the state and concerned district administrations. However, deviations from enforced laws have been found in the functioning of the administration while dealing with extremely sensitive issues related to violence against children in the state. The Commission has noticed during the course of multiple inquiries that the state and district administrations have been noncooperative and rampantly disregarding the laws," it said. As per the report, it has been widely reported that child trafficking is a growing menace in the state of West Bengal. Children, especially girls, are being trafficked to different places. Highlighting the Juvenile Justice Act, the report said, "State administration is found to be violating the special child related acts laid down by the Parliament of India POCSO Act, 2012; the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015; and the RTE Act, 2009." "However, it has been found that West Bengal is running a parallel system of dealing with what are being called 'destitute children' in the state. These institutions are called 'Cottage Homes' and are being run under the Cottage Scheme, a Scheme for the welfare of children in need of care and protection under the Department of Women and Child Development andSocial Welfare, Government of West Bengal," it added. (ANI)
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