The government s response comes based on an observation of the parliamentary standing committee on Home Affairs led by Rajya Sabha MP and Congress leader Anand Sharma which noted that there have been a large number of cases under the POCSO Act where the age of the juveniles has been below the threshold age for applicability of the law.
The states have also been asked to make suitable arrangements for isolation facilities within the CCIs to take care of the children suffering from Covid and prepare a roaster of child psychologists or counsellors to visit the facilities and interact with the children.
The government has come out with guidelines for the care and protection of the children affected by COVID-19 and fixed responsibilities for the states, district magistrates, police, Panchayati Raj institutions and urban local bodies.
NEW DELHI: The government has laid out a procedure for rehabilitation of children who lost their parents to Covid-19.
The public notice by the Women and Child Development Ministry comes amid reports that several messages offering children, who have lost their parents to Covid, for adoption are circulating on social media.
Advising the public to refrain from engaging or encouraging such action, which is in contravention to legal provisions, the WCD Ministry has laid out lawful procedure of rehabilitation of children who lost their parents to Covid-19.
The ministry has said that the child who has lost both parents to Covid-19 ought to be produced before the District Child Welfare Committee (CWC) within 24 hours, excluding the journey time.
The government has laid out a procedure for children who have lost both parents to COVID-19 to appear before the District Child Welfare Committee for rehabilitation.