HYDERABAD:Forcing a child to stand in the Sun or kneel down for hours or caning him or her to instill discipline continue to be accepted as a common form of corporal punishment in schools.
Despite government ban on corporal punishment and directives to follow guidelines set under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, continued violation of child rights is a cruel persisting truth.
The State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) has registered 91 cases of violation of child rights across the two Telugu speaking states in 2014-15. Out of these, 63 pertain only to corporal punishment. The Commission has pointed out that these were the cases that had turned “sensational” and thus taken up suo motu.
State-wise statistics issued out by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) for 2014-15 is a shocker.
When it comes to complaints relating to Right to Education (RTE) received by NCPCR as on 31 December 2014, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana together registered a whopping 796 cases of the total 1391 from across the country! The Telugu States are followed by Delhi which has 98 pending complaints on the same date.
Similarly, NCPCR’s statewise details of complaints relating to Child Rights Violations or Deprivation during 2014-15 say 49 and 32 complaints were received from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana respectively. Of these, 17 and 21 are pending as on December 31, 2014.
There are 56 types of punishments that are considered corporal by law and banned, says Achutha Rao, member of the SCPCR. According to him, the menace of corporal punishment is most prevalent in the Telugu States. “In every case, victim is the child. Private school managements, local politicians, education officers and policemen form a party and go against the victim’s parents,” he said, asking for strictest punishment for teachers involved in such cases.
As of today, punishment for indulging in corporal punishment is imprisonment from 6 months to 3 years and a fine of Rs 25,000. “More than brutality in the name of punishments, a bigger threat is sexual offences. Only strictest of punishments can help innocent tiny tots,” he added.
Poor Record
91 cases of Child Rights violation
63 pertain to corporal punishment
796 of 1391 cases of violation of Right to Education booked in TS & AP