BHUBANESWAR:Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will flag off Odisha Police’s campaign ‘Paree Pain Katha Tiye’ against child sexual abuse on Monday. As many as 15 chariots dubbed as Pari Express will start rolling from AG Square on the day here. Each chariot will cover two districts in 15 days and after the end of the campaign, all the chariots will converge in Bhubaneswar for a valedictory function on June 12.
DGP Dr RP Sharma on Sunday released the logo and launched the theme song of the campaign. The chariots will have LCD screens to show audio-visuals. Besides, leaflets and other printed materials will be distributed, followed by community interaction during the campaign. UNICEF is the technical collaborative partner of Odisha Police in the awareness campaign.
“During the last three years, about 1200 cases of sexual abuse against minor girls were reported every year on an average in the State,” Dr Sharma said. “In several incidents, the victims were targeted by known persons including people staying in the same locality, community and others. Curbing sexual assault cases against minor girls requires awareness in the society and sensitisation of the people,” he said. Besides sexual abuse of minors, over 2100 cases of rape were reported on an average every year in the last three years.
The police stated that the key objective of the campaign is to spread awareness among communities, families and parents that child sexual abuse can be prevented, and each one has an important role in curbing the menace. “We will not end the campaign abruptly. After the Pari Express chariots converge in Bhubaneswar, we will take certain post-campaign initiatives to curb the menace of sexual abuse against children,” the DGP said.
Besides mobilising pubic awareness, the campaign will sensitise the police officers when the Pari Express will visit the districts. IG (Headquarters) and nodal officer of the campaign Asheet Kumar Panigrahi, Crime Branch IG Arun Bothra, Odisha and UNICEF Odisha Chief Yumi Bae were also present.