Lok Sabha Question No. 4348 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-12-20
Subject: Improvements in POCSO Act
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Shri Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4348

TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.12.2024

## IMPROVEMENTS IN POCSO ACT

## 4348.  SHRI GURMEET SINGH MEET HAYER:

Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Ministry is facing several issues including delays in investigation, lapses in evidence preservation and insufficient resources, if so, the details of the steps being taken by the 73 Government to address these issues including providing adequate funds and training to law enforcement and setting up of special courts for POCSO cases;
- (b) whether the provisions of Act on age determination and evidence collection have led to complications in trials, particularly with  the  challenge of  proving recent intercourse, if so, the details of the plan to resolve these challenges and improve the conviction rate under POCSO; and
- (c) whether the Government have plans for better inter-agency coordination and public awareness programmes to ensure effective implementation of the POCSO Act?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR)

(a)  to  (c):  The  Protection  of  Children  from  Sexual  Offences,  (POCSO)  Act,  2012 enacted by Govt of India provides safeguards for children against sexual abuse. The Act defines a child as any person below the age of 18 years. It is a gender neutral Act and under the Act, the burden of proof rests on the accused. It mandates Child friendly practices in the processing of cases which includes fixed timelines for Investigation and prosecution. It prescribes stringent punishment for sexual crimes against children and provides for establishment of Special Courts for the purpose of ensuring speedy trial. Further, as per the Act, the evidence of the child shall be recorded within a period of thirty days of the Special Court taking cognizance of the offence and the Special Court shall complete the trial, as far as possible, within a period of one year from the date of taking cognizance of the offence. The Act was amended in 2019 to introduce more stringent punishment including death penalty for committing sexual crimes on children, with a view to deter the perpetrators & prevent such crimes against children.

Further Ministry of Women & Child Development notified POCSO Rules, 2020 which include provisions for mandatory police verification of staff in schools and care homes, procedures  to  report  child  sexual  abuse  material  (pornography),  imparting  ageappropriate child rights education, among other things. The POCSO Rules 2020 also stipulate  that  the  central  government  and  every  state  government  shall  provide periodic  training  including  orientation  programmes,  sensitization  workshops  and refresher courses to all persons, whether regular or contractual, coming in contact with the children, to sensitize them about child safety and protection and educate them regarding their responsibility under the Act. The assistance is to be provided to the child as mandated under the POCSO Act, 2012 and POCSO Rules, 2020

Department of Justice is implementing a scheme for setting up Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) including Exclusive POCSO Courts for expeditious trial and disposal of cases related to rape and POCSO cases. As per the information received from High Courts,  as  of  31.10.2024,  750  FTSCs  including  408  exclusive  POCSO  Courts are functional in 30 States/UTs, which have disposed more than 2,87,000 cases. Since the inception of the Scheme, exclusive POCSO Courts have disposed over 1,83,000 cases. As informed by the Ministry of Law and Justice, the disposal of pending cases in  the  Courts  including  POCSO  cases,  lies  within  the  domain  of  the  judiciary. Pendency  of  court  cases  is  a  multi-faceted  problem.  Due  to  the  increase  in  the population of the country and awareness of their rights amongst the public, filing of fresh cases is also increasing year after year. Several factors may contribute to the high pendency of cases, including shortage of judicial officers & supporting court staff, complex evidence, and insufficient cooperation amongst stakeholders such as the bar, investigation  agencies,  witnesses,  and  litigants,  as  well  as  the  lack  of  proper application of rules and procedures. In criminal cases, including POCSO cases, the criminal justice system relies on full support from various agencies such as police, prosecution, forensic labs, handwriting experts, and medico-legal experts & so on. Delays  in  receiving  assistance  from  any  of  these  allied  agencies  may  exacerbate delays in case disposal. To address these challenges, the Department of Justice has conducted regular review meetings to ensure robust implementation of the Scheme, including the establishment of the FTSCs.

Further, the Government has taken various steps from time to time to create awareness of the provisions of the POCSO Act through electronic and print media, consultations, workshops and training programmes with stakeholders concerned. In order to generate awareness about the POCSO Act, a short film was disseminated in Cinema Halls and Doordarshan across the nation. Thereafter, Ministry has undertaken awareness campaign to encompass various aspects of the POCSO Act in an effective manner by way of a short video clips, an audio clip and a poster which have been disseminated  through  various  means  all  over  India.  For  effective  dissemination  of these creatives, they have also been translated into regional languages for effective outreach.  National  Council  of  Educational  Research  and  Training  (NCERT)  has published  Childline  1098  which  is  a  24x7x365  toll  free  Helpline  for  children  and POCSO E-box on the back side of the front cover of all the course books from class 6th  to  class  12th  to  equip  the  children  with  the  information  regarding  the  possible modes of protection/ complaints and emergency outreach.

Ministry of Women and Child Development has organized the following zonal conferences  and  sensitization/dissemination  workshops  under  Mission  Vatsalya Scheme:

i.  Zonal  Conferences:  Outreach  with  State  Governments/UT  Administrations  and Stakeholders through Zonal Conferences on Strategic Interventions for addressing Malnutrition  Concerns  and  for  the  Development,  Empowerment  and  Protection  of Women and Children including Mission Vatsalya scheme during the last financial year.

ii.  Dissemination Workshops: National Dissemination Workshop on Juvenile Justice (Care  and  Protection  of  Children  )  Act,  2015,  Protection  of  Children  from  Sexual Offences Act, 2012 and the rules there under and the Adoption Regulations, 2017 including Mission Vatsalya Scheme  on  17.08.2022 and 29.08.2022 with all States/UTs,  line  Ministries/  Departments,  representatives  from  Police,  National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), Child Protection functionaries including members of  Child  Welfare  Committees(CWCs)/Juvenile  Justice  Boards(JJBs)  and  other stakeholders.

iii. Workshops: Workshops on Sensitization/ Training Programme for representatives of Panchayati Raj Representatives (PRIs), Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and Police on Child Rights & Protection including Mission Vatsalya Scheme at Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) on 16.11.2022 and 14-15.09.2023 in collaboration with UT Administration. This workshop was attended by officers from Ministry, NCPCR, UT of J&K, Administrative and Police Training. Institutes, District Child Protection Officers (DCPOs), CWCs, JJBs, Special Juvenile Police Units (SJPUs), representative from UNICEF and other Stakeholders.

iv. Vatsal Bharat: Regional Symposiums on 'Child Protection, Child Safety and Child Welfare'  including  Mission  Vatsalya  were  organized,  starting  from  02.07.2023  to 18.08.2023 at Delhi, Bhopal, Mumbai, Ranchi, Guwahati and Varanasi. In the Regional Symposiums, representatives from States/UTs including members of Child Welfare Committees  (CWCs),  Juvenile  Justice  Boards  (JJBs),  Members  of  Village  Child Protection Committee (VCPC) and Anganwadi Workers had participated.

v.  A  three  day  consultation  was  organized  by  the  Ministry  from  22.03.2023  to 24.03.2023  at  NIPCCD  to  improve  adoptability  of  Mission  Vatsalya  portal  by  its users/stakeholders.

vi.  A  virtual  technical  training  Session  on  the  Modules  of  Institutional  and  NonInstitutional Care in the Mission Vatsalya Portal for North Eastern States (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura) was organized by the Ministry on 15.11.2023.

The National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development have conducted a total of 65 Programmes under Section 3(6) of POCSO Rules during the year April, 2020  to  December,  2023.  These  programmes  were  attended  by  about  3515 participants  including  Principals  of  Kendriya  Vidyalaya,  Government  Officers  of Railways Banks and others Public Service Undertaking (PSUs), Representatives of Voluntary  Organizations  working  in  the  field  of  Women  and  Children,  Officials  of Ministry  of  Women  and  Child  Development,  Faculty  of  National  Institute  of  Public Cooperation and Child Development, Child Development Project Officers, Supervisors, Aanganwadi Workers, Functionaries of Competition Commission of India (Superintendents,  Child  Welfare  Officers,  Protection  Officers,  Social  Workers  & Counsellors), School Teachers and Staff, Faculty of University, Secondary and Higher Secondary  School  Children,  Functionaries  of  Mission  Vatsalaya  (District  Child Protection Officers, Protection Officers, I/C, Protection Officers NIC, Social Workers and  Counsellors),  Special  Juvenile  Police  Units,  Child  and  Functionaries,  Law Enforcement Agencies like  Police  &  Judiciary,  Medical  Professionals,  Members  of Child  Welfare  Committees  &  Juvenile  Justice  Board  and  Coordinators  of  Special Adoption Agency.

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