Kerala: Manual to make Local Self-Government Institutions child-friendly
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala State Child Rights Commission has brought out an operations manual and guidance note on the initiative to make all Local Self-Government Institutions (LSGIs) child-friendly. The document prepared by KILA with the technical support of UNICEF will be released by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as part of the Child Rights Week on November 18. Schoolchildren and other stakeholders in schools will take an oath on child rights and their responsibilities to create a better world. The initiative is being implemented in ten LSGIs in every district and all the LSGIs in Thrissur district in collaboration with KILA and the UNICEF. It will be launched across the state shortly.
Every year, the week from Children’s Day on November 14 and the Universal Children’s Day on November 20 is celebrated by the Child Rights Commission as Child Rights Week, said commission chairperson Shoba Koshy. A state-level quiz competition was organised for schoolchildren at every district headquarters for improving their knowledge about child rights. The best six teams will compete at the state-level for the top three slots on November 17. The six teams are from Palakkad, Thiruvananthapuram, Kasaragod, Malappuram, Ernakulam and Kollam. The competitions will be held at the Parish Hall, Animation Centre, Vellayambalam, at 1.30 p.m.
Dr Alexander Jacob, former director- general of police, will be the quiz master. The top three winners will receive cash prizes of Rs 10,000, Rs 7,500 and Rs 5,000 respectively. The quiz programme will be preceded by a session on child rights conducted by an expert for around 250 students from different schools in the city. On November 15, the commission will hold a consultation on the possible measures that can be taken to stop violence against children both at home and in their immediate environment and its neighbourhood. This will include a discussion with stakeholders on the Bala Suraksha protocol and on how to ensure its effective implementation.
