Chittorgarh to have helpline number

UDAIPUR: FOLLOWING CENTRAL GOVT’S PERMISSION, CHILDLINE FOUNDATION OF INDIA IS ALL SET TO START A CHILDLINE NUMBER 1098

Chittorgarh district will also have a helpline soon to help children in distressed conditions.

Following the central government’s permission, the Childline Foundation of India is all set to start a childline number 1098. The helpline will be managed by Shree Asra Vikas Sansthan of Udaipur.

Information about missing, abused and abandoned children can be shared on the toll-free number, after which the children can be rescued and sent to government shelter homes or rehabilitation centres, said Bhojraj Singh, the head of Shree Asra Vikas Sansthan.

He said a nine-member team comprising a programme coordinator, a counseller, six team members and a volunteer will manage the helpline operations and also take help from other departments. A counselling team will provide 24-hour service, he added.

This team will also conduct awareness campaigns at schools to educate the students about the helpline and the activities will be monitored by Childline Foundation of India, said Singh.

Commenting over the development Chittorgarh MP CP Joshi said, “We are striving to get the Childline for Chittorgarh for last four years and following that I have also met Maneka Gandhi.

“The need to have such childline at Chittorgarh arises as the district is surrounded by highways from all sides, it is a railway junction too, the movement of people is more and in all that cases, incidents of missing children or movement of children for child labour to the neighbouring states occur more at Chittorgarh. In view of that such childline will be much helpful for the people.”

So far, the work of rescue and rehabilitation of the children is being done either by the police or child welfare committee. Once the childline number starts, the information about children in distressed conditions can be shared directly on the number.