Awareness drive reaches 21 municipal schools, with sessions on child rights, POCSO guidelines, and safe practices as CCTV expansion also gathers pace
A child safety awareness session is conducted for municipal school students, teachers, and parents. PIC/BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
In a fresh push to strengthen child safety, nearly 21 schools run by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) have conducted awareness sessions on child rights, POCSO guidelines, the role of Sakhi Savitri Committees, and the steps students can take to keep themselves safe.
Organised by Vidhayak Bharati, a non-profit working in the field of child rights, the sessions have so far reached more than 3500 students, over 750 parents, and 550 teachers. The organisation plans to cover 20 more schools over the next nine days.
“Simply asking your child to identify what alarms them as they walk from home to school and back can make all the difference. Open communication with students is key,” said Santosh Shinde, child rights defender and director of Vidhayak Bharati.
Second phase of CCTV installations
Ahead of next year’s budget, the BMC school education department is propsing to activate the second phase of CCTV installations across civic-run schools in the suburbs, sources said.
In the first phase, 123 schools across wards A to F received CCTV surveillance. The second phase, proposed to roll out in the upcoming year, will cover 110 schools 65 in the eastern suburbs and 45 in the western suburbs. After phase two, the third phase plans to extend CCTV coverage to all remaining schools.
Phase 1
Wards covered: A to F North
Number of schools: 123
Cameras per school: 20-50
Locations: Lobbies, main gates, corridors
Budget used: Approx Rs 18 crore
Phase 2 (2026–27)
Areas: Eastern and Western suburbs
Number of schools: 110
Proposed budget: Approx Rs 25 crore
Phase 3
Coverage: All remaining civic-run schools
Pocso session
What kind of topics do these sessions tackle?
Children
1.5-hour session
Discussions:
>> How to call emergency services
>> What to do in times of trouble
>> Should you trust Google and AI completely?
Parents
1-hour session
Discussions:
>> How to get your children to open up
>> Communicating beyond academics and play
>> Being proactive about child safety
Teachers
1-hour session
Discussions:
>> Understanding Sakhi Savitri Committees and other support systems
>> Preparing for prevention and response
>> Increasing student involvement
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