COIMBTORE: Coimbatore city police have put back 173 dropouts in school in the last two months under their Operation Reboot initiative.On Tuesday, commissioner of police V Balakrishnan felicitated the students who rejoined schools.
Speaking on the occasion, Balakrishnan said Operation Reboot is aimed at identifying dropouts and preventing them from taking to crime.
According to sources, personnel from 20 police stations in the city identified 324 school dropouts and met 250 of them since June first week. Personnel from the Juvenile Aid Police Unit (JAPU), a special unit that prevents crime against women and children, and Law & Order units took coordinated action to help the dropouts continue studies.
“A survey of 141 government, 46 government-aided and 170 private schools in the city revealed that 324 students dropped out in the current education year. We met them and their family and observed their reasons for leaving their studies. They were given counselling. We then took steps to admit 173 dropouts back in schools in the city. Twenty other students were put in schools in their native places,” Balakrishnan said.
As part of the drive, children were categorised under different categories including children having abusive parents, dropouts, differently-abled students and children who contacted Childline 1098. In the first phase held between March and April, police admitted 91 dropouts in schools. Of these, some of them needed assistance for paying fees and a few had expected medical assistance for family members. The assistance was provided to them through Kavasam trust, which is a joint venture of police and industries, sources said.