Awareness: State govt introduces POCSO chapter in class VIII books

Kolkata: Class VIII books prescribed by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) on the subject ‘Health and Physical Education’ will now have dedicated pages educating students about the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act.

There are instances of children being subjected to sexual abuse in school, inside their homes and other places too. Often a child is unable to open up against such abuse. The excerpt will teach the students that sexual abuse is a heinous crime and there is strong punishment under POCSO Act for the perpetrator. It describes what a child should do in case subjected to sexual abuse.

The legal aspects of such offence have been depicted in the form of verses and the understanding of ‘good touch’ and ‘bad touch’ has been mentioned in detail.

“The way the WBBSE has introduced such a serious matter in the school curriculum will bring awareness not only among the students but also among parents and home tutors. Children will understand that if he/ she is subjected to such offence, the matter should be brought to the notice of the elders,” said an official of West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights. POCSO Act is a gender neutral legislation providing for the welfare and safety of children.

As per section 2(d) of POCSO Act, a child is any person who is below eighteen years of age.

“It was necessary to include this subject right from the school level so that the children themselves can be vocal against such offence and most importantly not commit such offence himself/ herself,” said a headmistress of a south Kolkata school.