COIMBATORE: Coimbatore police said their initiative ‘Project Pallikkoodam’ has reached about 80% of schools and 1.9 lakh school students within seven months. As per police, women help desk officers have played a major role in spreading awareness about the crimes against children among school students.
Four women help desk officers from Vadavalli and Periyanaickenpalayam police stations conducted over 480 awareness programs in the past seven months to assist students in ensuring their physical and mental well-being.
Project Pallikkoodam was launched in June 2022 to prevent crime against children and make them aware of it. A total of 60 Women Help Desk Officers were appointed from each police station, who created awareness among 1,90,000 school children through 3,561 awareness programs in 1,208 schools across the district in the past seven months.
Vadavalli (252) and Periyanaickenpalayam (232) police stations have conducted more awareness drives and on Saturday, Coimbatore Superintendent of Police V Badrinarayanan appreciated the help desk officers of both stations M Kousalya, M Meena Priya, J Prema and L Saritha for their efforts.
L Saritha told TNIE, “We conduct the awareness programs by visiting schools and splitting students into three categories. Students under 10 years come under the first category, while girls above 10 years and boys above 10 years come in the other categories. We explain good and bad touches to the students in the first category and the consequences of the POCSO Act to the students of the second and third categories.”
“The students don’t have a basic understanding of what crimes can be committed against them and whom to complain to, due to which, most of the time, they suffer both physically and mentally. Through this drive, we approach them like friends and make them aware of the crimes and how they can lodge a complaint,” she added.
A total of ten cases were registered under the POCSO Act in Periyanaickenpalayam, Anaimalai, Kovilpalayam, Madukkarai, Sirumugai, Alandurai and Pollachi in the past seven months due to this initiative. Kousalya said, “The cases registered based on earlier incidents show that the students didn’t know about the crimes against them. We have arrested the accused in these cases.”