The draft framework of Nirbhaya, a wide-spectrum policy to combat women and child abuse, emphasizes the importance of local bodies in the prevention, identification, rescue and rehabilitation of sex abuse victims.
The fight against sexual abuse, as envisaged by the Nirbhaya project, will be panchayat-led and community-based.
As a first step, the draft policy seeks to revamp and strengthen the ‘jagratha samithis’ at the local level, most of which are in a moribund state.
The jagratha samithis will function not only as a grievance redressal and legal counseling mechanism but also as a means to identify and rehabilitate victims and to reintegrate them into the society.
Anti-trafficking squads, one-stop-crisis cells and transit schools will be established under the scheme and crime mapping will be carried out. Anti Trafficking Squads shall be set up in every District headed by an officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police, the draft policy states.
One-stop-crisis cells which will provide counseling support, medical aid, legal aid and referral to safe shelters will be established.
Residential transit Schools with proper counseling facilities to prevent second-generation trafficking will be established in all districts. Bridge courses that will enable the child or woman to reenter mainstream education will also be provided in transit schools.
Crime Mapping refers to community mobilization and focused group discussions on the prevalence of sexual harassment, danger zones, preventive strategies, local interventions and contact persons and groups.
The draft policy divided sexual violence against women and children into four. One, sexual violence by strangers. Two, sexual violence in the form of incest within the family or by known persons.
Three, sexual trafficking of minors and women by inducements and threats. Four, sex trafficking as part of organized crime, involving money, alcohol and drugs.
“There is an urgent need to develop well designed schemes for victims coming under each of the above categories of sexual violence,” the draft policy states.
