Bengaluru: The booking of a CBSE school principal for sexually harassing a student served as a wake-up call for the Department of Primary and Secondary Education. Authorities realised that they have very little control over central board schools with regard to child safety.
The Karnataka Education Act 1983 covers only the State board schools. Karnataka was one of the first to put in place a State Child Protection Policy (CPP) for educational institutions in April 2016. It demands suspension of any person booked under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2012. But the policy does not cover central board schools.
"The Central Board of Secondary Education and the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination must be told to follow the CPP guidelines," a department official said.
The limitation of the policy came to the fore when the principal of a Kendriya Vidyalaya was booked on the charge of sexually harassing a student. What has irked parents, teachers and child rights activists was that the principal, after being granted bail, allegedly returned to the school. They point out that the CPP states that, in a case of sexual offence, the accused needs to be suspended till completion of the enquiry. If the person is found guilty, his/her services should be terminated.
Government to address gap
To address this issue, a senior official said that the department has decided to amend the Karnataka Education Act 1983 to ensure that central board schools also follow the CPP. The policy has checklists for different stakeholders, including schools, police, Women and Child Development Department, Education Department and others.
The CPP includes formation of a child protection committee, guidelines for preventing child safety violations, and how to report and act during instances of student safety violations.
For school managements, the checklist has been divided into mandatory and recommended.
Vidya R., a parent whose daughter studies in a CBSE affiliated school, said, "The headquarters of central board schools are in Delhi. Their regional offices do not respond to our queries. The CPP will help parents approach the State Education Department if schools do not comply with safety guidelines."
