Uttaranchal sets up sexual abuse redressal cells for schools

Hardwar, Dec 12: The Uttaranchal government has constituted sexual abuse redressal cells for all the public schools and higher secondary schools in the state, following several complaints in the connection in the last few months.

State Women Commission chairperson Santosh Chauhan told the reporters here today that these committees at the school, district and the state level would hear the complaints of sexual harassment and take speedy action on them.

At the school level, the committee, to be headed by the school principal, will include the seniormost teacher, the girl monitor, one representative from the teachers-guardians association, one woman nominated by the association, one woman nominated by the medical officer and the patwari.

At the state level, the cell will be headed by state Sarv Siksha Abhiyan director Pushpa Manas, and will comprise the Deputy Director, Secondary Education Seema Jaunsari, a woman officer nominated by the state DGP, a woman officer nominated by the Director General of the state medical services, the Additional Director, Higher Secondary Education&Exams and the Additional Director of the State Educational Research&Training Centre, she added.

''Such committees, as per guidelines of the judgment of the apex court in Visakha vs State of Rajasthan, have already been constituted in all the universities of the state, autonomous bodies such as BHEL, Hardwar and ONGC, Dehradun and at the district and the state level for the government and the non-government employees,'' Dr Chauhan added.

UNI