The ST & SC development, minorities & backward classes welfare department of the Odisha government on Thursday warned the teaching and non-teaching staff in residential tribal girls’ school and hostels of any kind of sexual misconduct which would result in dismissal from service.
In a press release, the department said it has codified a ‘Zero Tolerance Policy’ for any kind of sexual offence against the girls. The residential schools in the state are managed by SC and ST Development (SSD) Department.
“Violation of this policy will be dealt with promptly and in the most stringent manner. Any kind of sexual offence against any student shall be treated as a major offence under the OCS (CC&A) Rules 1962 and shall be liable for dismissal from services”, the release said.
According to the SC/ST department, at least 22 girls staying in different hostels across the state have faced sexual harassment in the last five years.
The state government has created 3,000 posts of Lady Matrons (warden) to be engaged in girl’s hostels. This has not only ensured safety but also enhanced the confidence of the girls in the SSD schools and hostels.
Efforts are being taken to ensure a safe ecosystem around the educational institutions, the release said. Adequate and age-appropriate information is provided to students to recognise a “good touch and bad touch” and they are encouraged to report any fears they might have regarding any unwanted advances made towards them, it added.
Of the 520,000 thousand boarders staying in 6,000 hostels across the state, 58% are girls students. After a spate of pregnancies were reported from such schools over the last few years, the state government had instructed the headmasters to do routine health check-ups.
Health screening is conducted for adolescent reproductive and sexual health issues apart from fever, malaria, diarrhoea, chicken pox and acute respiratory infections for all students in residential schools, the department said.
Detailed guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) have also been issued to ensure students’ safety and security in SSD schools and hostels. These guidelines specify the Code of Conduct and duties of staff, environmental safeguards to be adopted in hostels, recording the movement of boarders and visitors in the schools and hostel campus etc., the release added.
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