Badlapur school sexual abuse case: Panel suggests mandatory CCTVs, character verification of staff

MUMBAI: A committee set up by the Bombay High Court after the Badlapur incident, wherein two minor girls were sexually assaulted by a contractual worker inside their school premises has recommended mandatory CCTVs and character verification of staffers.

In its report submitted to the court on Wednesday, the committee, headed by two former HC judges, has made several suggestions to be implemented across schools and other educational institutions in the state.

These include mandatory CCTV cameras in schools, character verification of staff, schools taking responsibility for safe transportation, teaching children about “good touch” and “bad touch”, raising awareness about cybercrimes and displaying the ‘1098’ (children helpline) at prominent places.

On Wednesday, a division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale asked the state government to go through the report and its recommendations. “We will also go through the report. Let the state government inform what steps it would take on the recommendations in two weeks,” the court said.

In August last year, two five-year-old girls were sexually assaulted by a male attendant inside the toilet of their school premises. The accused was arrested but was killed in September in an alleged retaliatory shootout by the police.

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"Teach students about good touch, bad touch," says Bombay HC

After the sexual assault incident, the HC had taken suo moto (on its own) cognisance of the case and directed that a committee of experts be set up by the government to prepare a report on the safety of children in schools and educational institutions.

The committee in its report said apart from installing CCTVs in schools, the footage of one month should also be preserved. If any staff is found to have any criminal background then he or she should be immediately terminated, the report said.

Children of pre-primary and primary classes should be taught specifically to distinguish between “good touch, bad touch” by giving demonstration is also a suggestion made by the committee.