Three teenage pregnancies reported in Karnataka within six months
Bengaluru: Karnataka has reported three cases of teenage pregnancies within the past six months, with the latest incident coming to light at a private school in Channarayapatna town of Hassan district, reported by The New Indian Express on Saturday.
Experts and child rights officials have expressed serious concern over the recurring cases, pointing to gaps in child protection mechanisms within educational institutions. They have cited the absence of child protection committees in schools, lack of awareness about the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, inadequate sex education, and parental ignorance as key factors contributing to such incidents.
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The commission’s chairman, Shashidhar Kosambe reportedly said, the main reason is not implementing the Karnataka State Child Protection Policy, 2016, in schools, especially at residential schools like those in Yadgir and Koppal where such incidents have taken place.
According to the policy, the commission must have two teachers or school officials and two outsiders who work in the interest of child rights, so that there is no prejudice whenever complaints are filed.
“It is the responsibility of the commission to monitor children and school staff. Awareness programmes on child protection policies, the POCSO Act, and sexual abuse must be conducted regularly for students and staff. Police must be informed immediately when a violation is detected. The policy and the commission must become part of the ecosystem and shouldn’t be treated as extra work,” TNIE quoted Kosambe as saying.
Psychiatry professor at ESI hospital, Rajajinagar, Dr Chandrashekar said, many adolescent girls become pregnant when they are sexually abused by their male friends. The victims undergo a lot of physical changes and mental trauma because of the way others respond. Therefore, whenever we come across a pregnant teenager, especially the victims of sexual abuse, we provide counselling to the victim as her family members.
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Activist arrested for uploading fabricated audio, documents to defame KAS officer
Bengaluru (PTI): Social activist Snehamayi Krishna was arrested for allegedly creating fake documents and uploading a fabricated audio clip on social media to defame a senior KAS officer, police said on Friday.
Krishna, a resident of Mysuru, was taken into custody by the Central Crime Branch, they said.
The arrest followed an investigation into a complaint filed by D B Natesh, a senior Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS) officer and former Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) Commissioner.
A case was registered on February 18 at the Bengaluru City Cyber Crime Police Station.
According to police, Krishna allegedly created fake documents and an audio clip using the complainant’s photograph and uploaded them on his Facebook account, carrying out a defamatory campaign and targeting the officer.
“During the investigation, evidence was collected from the complainant and social media platforms, and the audio clip uploaded on Facebook was examined,” a statement from the office of Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said.
Following a court-issued search warrant, police conducted a search at the accused’s residence and seized relevant documents, it said.
Police added that a notice had been issued to Krishna to appear before them, and he has been secured and is being questioned in connection with the case.
