Two more police stations come up with ‘child friendly corners’

Two more police stations in the city have got ‘child friendly corners’ (CFC), where distressed children will be kept so that they do not become panicked on finding policemen in uniform in front of them.

Inaugurated on Monday, the two CFCs have come up at Ultadanga and Karaya police stations. One CFC was opened earlier at Tollygunj police station.

The CFCs will be run by the Kolkata Police in collaboration with an NGO that works for the benefit of children.

CFC is a separate zone in a police station which has an atmosphere that is child-friendly.

Studies have revealed that distressed children get panicked finding policemen in uniform and it leaves a deep impact on their mind.

In view of this, a decision was taken to set up CFCs where distressed children can be kept till the Juvenile Justice Board directs the police where to send a particular child.

Often police rescue missing children. But the panicked children are unable to share information about themselves properly as the atmosphere in a police station makes them feel uncomfortable.

But it is a much easier task for volunteers from an NGO to get details from them about their address and parents when taken to a CFC where there are toys, balloons and other entertainment items for children.

No policemen are allowed to enter a CFC in their uniform. So a police volunteer has been posted in each of the CFCs to work with members of the NGO.

The plan is to set up a CFC at each of the police stations in the city. Initially, the first CFC was started at Tollygunj police station. The two new ones have been set up in such locations where children rescued by officers of other police stations can be easily brought till such CFCs come up in all the police stations.

There is one CFC in Diamond Harbour police station in South 24-Parganas and initiatives have been taken to develop similar set-up in other police stations in the state.