Paul Lyngdoh laments lack of awareness on POCSO Act
Shillong, Nov 11: In a significant progress towards tackling child marriage and violence against women and children, the Social Welfare department has submitted the proposed Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for addressing the twin issues in the state.
While the SOP has been submitted, the government is looking for ways to strike a balance between the legal aspects and the prevalent practice of early marriages.
“There is rampant premature marriage of adolescents and minors… how do we work out a balance between what is being practised and what the law of the land says…” Adviser to Social Welfare department Paul Lyngdoh said after chairing a meeting with stakeholders on Tuesday.
Informing about submission of the SOP, he said the SOP will now be examined by the Advocate General before being submitted to the court.
Several cases related to child marriage are lying pending with the courts, he said while underlining the importance of the SOP.
Highlighting the challenges in implementing laws like Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in rural areas, he lamented the serious lack of awareness on the crucial Act in most of the villages in the state.
Meanwhile, Lyngdoh underlined the fact that there are no instances of child marriage in the state while there are cases of early marriage and teenage pregnancy.
“We have early marriages being practiced all across the state… we have multiple numbers of girl children who conceived at the age of 13-14,” he said.
Explaining the challenge for law enforcers, he said, “You have to arrest the offenders… then the village pleads ignorance and say that this has been our practice for generations together.”
“We have counsellors, experts, and CDPOs who will reach out to far-flung villages to create awareness about these laws,” he said.
The former cabinet minister emphasized the importance of community policing and strengthening Village Defence Parties (VDPs) to support law enforcement agencies.
