This story is from June 27, 2022

NHRC asks Odisha chief secretary to comply with recommendations on shelter home abuse cases

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed Odisha chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra to take action on the recommendation of the special rapporteur, NHRC on the issue of death and exploitation of children in shelter homes in the state in general and in the Dhenkanal district in particular.
NHRC asks Odisha chief secretary to comply with recommendations on shelter home abuse cases
Odisha chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra
BHUBANESWAR: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed Odisha chief secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra to take action on the recommendation of the special rapporteur, NHRC on the issue of death and exploitation of children in shelter homes in the state in general and in Dhenkanal district in particular.
The rights panel passed this order on June 21 after hearing a petition filed by activist and human rights lawyer Radhakanta Tripathy on July 17, 2019.

The petitioner alleged that a minor student Sambhunath Nayak was found dead on July 2, 2019 at Laxminarayan Gurukul Ashram in Dhenkanal district.
In the same district, Good News India Dream Centre shelter home located at Belatikri was running for years illegally. In this shelter home, minor children were sexually exploited. Both the ashram and shelter home were running illegally, he added.
The commission took cognizance of the case and conducted several hearings since 2019. In the first case, the SP of human rights protection cell (HRPC), Odisha Police in its report submitted before the NHRC in December last year that the Ashram School was closed, and criminal proceedings were initiated against its errant workers. The charge sheet had been forwarded to the court in this case. The death of the minor was natural. All the students were rescued and rehabilitated, said the report.

In the second case, a committee had visited the Beltikri shelter home and found that the institution was not registered under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
It had not followed the guidelines under the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).
It was found that the victim girls and other inmates were subjected to sexual abuse and molestation by the heads of the shelter home and others. Three separate cases had been registered against accused persons and charge sheets have been filed in this case before the local court.
On October 23, 2020 order, the commission had directed Vinod Aggarwal, special rapporteur of eastern zone, to enquire the matter thoroughly and submit the report with recommendations.
In his report, the special rapporteur has asked several questions to the government regarding administrative failure in these two cases.
However, all such actions were taken only after the occurrence of the incidents and no enquiry report or compliance report has been submitted till date on the recommendations of the special rapporteur. Therefore, the commission directed the Odisha chief secretary to take action on the recommendation of the special rapporteur.
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About the Author
Hemanta Pradhan

Hemanta Pradhan writes for the Times of India on education, hospital issues, transport, agriculture & tribal affairs. He has been working as a journalist since 2011. He has a PG degree in Journalism & Mass Communication from Berhampur University. He has won Laadli Media Awards for gender sensitivity.

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