Badlapur sexual assault: ‘Even top schools may lack safety measures’

Swati Popat Vats, president of the Early Childhood Association (right) Arundhati Chavan, president of the Parents Teachers Association-United Forum

Following the sexual assault of two four-year-old girls at a Badlapur school, parents' organisations statewide are demanding clarity on actions against the schools and perpetrators. They also want details on preventative measures. The groups are questioning whether government departments properly monitor schools with past incidents to ensure corrective actions are taken or if these cases are neglected. They believe it is the responsibility of the education department and child rights commissions to ensure schools with previous issues have implemented necessary safety measures.

Following the Badlapur incident, Rohit Dandawate, president of the Global Parents' Teachers' Association, wrote to the State Child Rights Commission seeking intervention on the safety of children in schools. Dandawate wrote: "Parents are urging the education department to issue directives for background checks of non-teaching staff in schools. By implementing such orders, it is hoped that future incidents can be prevented... This initiative would also include updating school employee data at local police stations to monitor compliance."

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Dandawate told mid-day, "Is there any system where a government agency or officials like education inspectors check the status of security and safety measures taken by schools where such cases happened? Nobody knows. Things are forgotten, and then another new case comes up."

Schools must step up to teach kids to protect themselves and raise an alarm, says Arundhati Chavan, president of the Parents Teachers Association-United Forum. "It has become increasingly important in today's world to educate children about sexual abuse, and schools have started waking up to this reality. The role of the school has become more important today than before, as children are growing up in nuclear or single-parent families and are relying on their schools for support," Chavan said.

"It's time for schools to also have a child protection policy and a robust system for hiring staff," said Sakhi Ramana, an educational activist. "It is often seen that schools are more concerned when hiring teaching staff. But, while hiring helpers, cleaners, janitors, and security personnel, they either rely on agencies or randomly hire people who come through local contacts. In many schools, CCTV cameras are put up for show but are found non-functional," Ramana added.

The Early Childhood Association (ECA) says schools should focus on child and parent safety rather than prestige. They urge schools to support affected families and follow POCSO Act guidelines. The ECA recommends creating a registry of POCSO-accused individuals and mandatory POCSO training for school staff.

Swati Popat Vats, president of the Early Childhood Association (ECA), told mid-day that parents should focus on safety over appearances when choosing schools. "Even top schools with great facilities may lack safety measures," she said. Vats called for a standardised safety policy for all institutions serving children under six.

The ECA also stresses that schools must report incidents to the police and inform parents, as per POCSO guidelines. Vats added, "We need a POCSO-accused registry. In child sexual abuse cases, if a school removes an accused staff member, what happens if they get hired elsewhere? We need better systems to protect our children." Vats warned, "Many parents are now demanding live streaming from CCTV cameras. While it might seem like an easy solution, it raises serious safety concerns. If parents access live footage, it means many people could see details about every child, potentially compromising their safety." ECA calls for police verification of all staff and training in GTBT and POCSO for both staff and students.

"The key is to verify all staff and ensure mandatory reporting of abuse," said the ECA. "Schools should report any abuse cases to the police, regardless of media backlash or parent trust concerns."