Leena Mehendale as member secretary Children’s Right Commission (CRC)

ARAB NEWS
The Middle East's Leading English Language Daily
Sunday 14 September 2008 (13 Ramadan 1429)
Maharashtra to set up child rights commission
Shahid Burney I Arab News —

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government, with a view to protecting the rights of children, has cleared a proposal for the establishment of a Children’s Right Commission (CRC). This was disclosed to Arab News by Minister of State for Women and Child Development Harshavardan Patil yesterday.

Elaborating on the issue, Patil said that it would be established at an estimated cost of Rs.55 lakhs. The commission will hold office temporarily at the state secretariat but would be provided a permanent office in Worli suburb in Mumbai soon.

The commission, with senior Indian Administrative Officer (IAS) Leena Mehendale as member secretary, will have 12 members — six of them drawn from the government. The chairperson of the commission would soon be appointed and its functioning would start in right earnest, Patil said.

Among other things that the commission will address are the issues of child labor, malnutrition among children, the right of education and establishment of courts to exclusively dispose of cases pertaining to child labor.

Patil also said that a decision to implement a 24-hour helpline at 26 places in the state has been taken that will enable women, who have not been meted out justice, to seek help. It is also proposed to amend the relevant clauses to empower the Women’s Commission as has been done by the Kerala government.

In order to help women’s self-help groups (SHGs) attain financial self-sufficiency, it has been proposed that self-help groups will pay a four percent interest on their loans while the balance would be borne by the state government.