J-K: Awareness programme under 'POCSO Act' held in Udhampur govt school

The Department of Information and Public Relations (DIPR) in coordination with Social Welfare Department Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday orgsed awareness program on Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2018 in Udhampur.

During the campaign, students educated about their rights guaranteed under the act and on ways to fight physical, sexual, emotional and psychological abuse.

"The main aim of the programme is to raise awareness among the students and to reduce the cases of sexual violence," Sajad Sumbria, district officer Udhampur, told .

"We want girls to be aware of good and bad touch so that they can protect themselves, he said.

The experts shared their views regarding various child-friendly provisions available in the act, which deals with their protection from sexual offences.

"It is a great step by the government as we learned about sexual violence and child violence. At this stage, it is very important for us to be aware of rights," a student of the Government Girl High School in Udhampur said.

"This will help us to know by the intention of male towards us. It is not just only females are the victims of sexual violence even males can witness that," another student said.

Principal Neelu Sharma of Modern Girl High School said, "This awareness programme is very beneficial for our students. This would help in reducing the gap between parents and children. Under this initiative, girls can openly disclose their problems with parents."

( With inputs from ANI )