BALASORE:The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday sought an Action Taken Report (ATR) from the State Government over sexual abuse of minor girl students in Government-run hostels.
Acting on a petition filed by human rights activist and Supreme Court lawyer Radhakanta Tripathy, the apex human rights body has asked Principal Secretary of School and Mass Education Department to submit the ATR within four weeks from the date the notice was issued.
A Class VII student of Bhimei village under Oupada block of Balasore district had become pregnant and the matter came to light in the second week of February. Tripathy alleged that such incidents reflect lack of awareness among the caretakers of the hostels to deal with the teenaged students. At least three cases of minor girl boarders of school hostels getting pregnant have come to the fore from across the State in past few months.
The petitioner said failure of Government officials of Social Justice and Empowerment Department of the Centre and Mass Education Department in ensuring basic rights of the minor schoolchildren amounts to torture, harassment and denial of basic human rights.
Tripathy requested NHRC to direct the State Government to rehabilitate the minor girls and ensure them proper medical care and compensation besides ensuring full protection of basic human rights in the SC/ST residential schools.