Madurai district Collector S. Aneesh Sekhar has formed a special team to prevent child marriages and female infanticide.
Social Welfare Minister Geetha Jeevan visited the district on December 29 and asked the district administration to form the special team.
The collector has formed the team comprising officials from 10 departments including Revenue and Disaster Management, Police and officials from Social Welfare Department and Department of Social Defence.
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Other members of the team would be officials from the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), Deputy Director (Health Services), Dean, Government Rajaji Hospital, Joint Director (Medical Services), representatives from Madurai Childline (1098) and Integrated Service Centre.
The special team would meet periodically and discuss implementation of various works under Child Protection and Maintenance.
Besides, this team would ensure stringent legal action against infanticide and create awareness against it.
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The officials would also take steps for rehabilitation of rescued children. The Collector said that illiteracy and poverty were the main reasons for infanticide among those families with more than two children.
The team would encourage such families to hand over the children, whom they cannot bring up, to the District Child Welfare Committee who would take care of their accommodation and education through children's homes.
Parents can also handover the children at Rajaji Government hospital, and Primary Health Centres.
People can approach the special team with regard to incidences of infanticide and illegal abortions, the Collector said.