Bail granted to majority of children in conflict with law
*Video-conferencing facilities restored on HC directives
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Apr 10: On the directions of the Supreme Court and the High Court, the Observation Homes in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir have been decongested in order to contain Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Moreover, video-conferencing facilities have been restored in all the Juvenile Justice Boards and Observations Homes in the interest of children in conflict with law.
Ever since the spread of Coronavirus in the country, the Supreme Court as well as High Court of Jammu and Kashmir have issued several directions for looking after the welfare institutions like Orphanages, Bal Ashram, Nari Niketan, Old Age Homes, Blind Schools and Observation Homes.
One of the important directions was pertaining to decongestion of Observation Homes on the lines of the prisons so as to contain COVID-19 and acting swiftly on the same the Principal Secretary to the Government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir Shailendra Kumar asked the Juvenile Justice Boards to process bail applications of the inmates lodged at Observation Homes.
After detailed examination of cases of children in conflict with the law lodged in two Observation Homes—one at Harwan in Srinagar and another at R S Pura in Jammu, the Juvenile Justice Boards today granted bail to majority of the inmates.
As per the details available with EXCELSIOR, nine out of the 12 inmates lodged in the Observation Home at R S Pura and 11 out of 12 inmates in Observation Home at Harwan have been granted bails by the respective Juvenile Justice Boards. With this, only three inmates have been left in R S Pura and one in Srinagar Observation Home.
“As per the observations of the Juvenile Justice Boards these four inmates were not entitled for the bail in the light of the directions issued by the Supreme Court as well as High Court of Jammu and Kashmir”, official sources said while disclosing that all the bailed out inmates have been handed over to their respective families with the direction not to move out of their houses.
It is pertinent to mention here that “child in conflict with law” has been defined under Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 as a child who is alleged or found to have committed an offence and has not completed 18 years of age on the date of commission of such offence.
Moreover, on account of well being of children in need of care and protection, five children have been shifted to SOS facilities in order to remove solitude when other children were taken aware by parents/fit persons. Among them, two are from Anantnag, one from Srinagar, one from Ganderbal and one from Kathua.
Sources disclosed that video-conferencing facilities have also been restored in all the Juvenile Justice Boards and Observation Homes of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir in the best interest of children in conflict with law.
Pointing towards the directions issued by the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Ministry of Minority Affairs and Social Justice, sources said that mechanism has been evolved to fight COVID-19, maintenance of mental and physical health and social distancing and the required information is being disseminated through District Social Welfare Officers, Child Welfare Committees and other officials to the extent possible.
They further said that Protection Officers and Counsellors of District Child Protection Units have been directed by the Principal Secretary Social Welfare Department to provide counselling in the Child Care Institutions/Homes through telephones. “Strict instructions have been issued to all the Child Welfare Committees to follow the guidelines of the Ministry of Women and Child Development in best interest of children lodged in various Child Care Institutions of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir”, they added.
Stating that Social Welfare Department has reached out approximately 20 lakh persons in the UT with welfare measures either in cash or in kind or through counselling or awareness programmes, sources said that about six lakh students have been awarded pre and post matric scholarship through DBT of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, six lakh old age persons, windows and persons with disabilities have been paid pensions of Rs 1000 and another tranche of Rs 1000 shall be paid to them by April 15.
Similarly, 6.5 lakh children in the age group of 0 to 6 years, lactating and pregnant women and out of school adolescent girls have been provided one month supplementary nutrition during this period. Moreover, funds have been placed at the disposal of CAPD and FCI to provide rice for three months to 6.5 lakh supplementary nutrition beneficiaries.
Even District Social Welfare Officers have been provided funds to the tune of Rs 46 lakh for procurement of sanitizers and masks for distribution among targeted beneficiaries.
To assist 70,000 eligible beneficiaries of Ladli Beti Scheme and Marriage Assistance Scheme, the Government has encashed Rs 25.33 crore today.
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