more-in On an average, one child is abused in Kozhikode district in one way or the other every day. Statistics released by Childline Kozhikode show that 356 children were abused in the district in 2017, which is considerably higher than the corresponding figures in the previous years. “The figures have gone up in all types of cases other than child labour. But this does not mean that child abuse is on the rise. The higher figures show that awareness campaigns have borne fruit, and that people are no longer reluctant to report child abuse cases,” said Childline Kozhikode district coordinator M.P. Mohammedali. Of the 356 cases, 101 pertain to physical abuse, 107 emotional abuse, and 125 are related to sexual abuse. As many as 12 cases of child beggary and 10 cases of child marriage were handled by the NGO during the year, while only one case of child labour was reported. Of the 125 cases of sexual abuse that come under the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act, nine were of harassment and one of using child for pornography. “We had only 109 sexual abuse cases reported in 2016 as against 125 in 2017. Awareness campaigns on the POCSO Act among teachers and students have led to a situation wherein teachers have become our primary informants,” Mr. Mohammedali said. The public also do their bit to ensure that the perpetrators are arrested. The public is legally liable to report cases if they come to know about them, he added. “We were able to prevent up to 10 child marriages in 2017 as against three in 2016, as we came to know about them much in advance. We sensitised the parties involved to the legal, social and health implications of the practice,” Mr. Mohammedali said. However, the downward trend in the reporting of child labour cases seems understated.

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