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UP govt schools have no panel to deal with cases of sexual harassment

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sexual harassment

Most of the government schools in Uttar Pradesh have not yet set up a dedicated panel to deal with sexual harassment cases, as per the provisions of the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act of 2012.

Lucknow, Feb 6 : Most of the government schools in Uttar Pradesh have not yet set up a dedicated panel to deal with sexual harassment cases, as per the provisions of the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act of 2012.

In contrast, private schools largely abide by the Act.

Sarita Singh, gender equity consultant for basic education department, said, “We run regular awareness programmes at schools and have nodal officers in every district as well as basic education officers, who go to schools to ensure that these campaigns are run regularly. There is supposed to be one dedicated teacher in each school to look after potential cases of sexual harassment.”

Vishwajeet Pandey, district officer for Lucknow, said that no such cases of sexual harassment have ever come to his attention from the 1,871 schools under the department during his term. “We hardly get to hear of any complaints from the school in-charges. During Covid, we got a complaint regarding a child marriage — where the girl had run away from home because she was being forced into marriage. No case of sexual harassment has so far come to light.”

Notably, a circular sent out by the basic education department to all government schools in 2016 directed that every school should have a three-member management committee for the monitoring of possible sexual offences.

This panel should be chaired by the head of the school and have at least one female member.

However, according to Sarita Singh, there has hardly been any follow-up to properly check the implementation of the order.

While the basic education department runs awareness campaigns with teachers and students in schools, a system for redressal and registering of such complaints is lacking.

Shuchita Chaturvedi, member of Uttar Pradesh State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said, “If a child wants to register an anonymous complaint with school authorities, how are they supposed to do that? There is nobody to address these complaints. The children are not aware of the course of action they should adopt to register a complaint.”

Meanwhile, Vijay Kiran Anand, director general for School Education Uttar Pradesh, said, “We have a programme called gender equity programme and through that, we keep conducting awareness drives. Sensitisation of teachers and students through trainings and workshops happen regularly. There are committees at the district-level but not in schools. We have given instructions to school managements but compliance of the order can be adjudged when complaints surface. We have around 1.36 lakh schools. We are not certain as to how many schools have complied to order.”

In a similar vein, Vishwajeet Pandey added, “We have conducted street plays and discussions at the schools but we never received a sexual harassment complaint as such. Complaints and suggestion boxes are provided in some schools.”

Crime

NIA files charge sheet against 2 in Vizianagaram terror conspiracy case

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New Delhi, Nov 11: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a chargesheet against two accused in an Andhra Pradesh and Telangana terror conspiracy case, an official said on Tuesday.

The two accused, identified as Siraz Ur Rahiman of Vizianagaram (Andhra Pradesh) and Syed Sameer of Hyderabad (Telangana), were arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Police on May 16 and May 17, 2025, respectively.

The chargesheet, filed against them before the NIA Special Court, Visakhapatnam, names them for their involvement in radicalising and preparing gullible youth across India through social media platforms to carry out terrorist attacks at various places in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and across the country.

Siraz Ur Rahiman and Syed Sameer have been charged under various sections of the BNS, Explosive Substances Act, and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The NIA, which took over the case from Andhra Pradesh Police, collected sufficient evidence establishing that the accused were inspired by ISIS ideology and were actively involved in spreading radical content through various social media groups and channels, targeting hundreds of gullible youths across India with the intent to incite them towards violent jihad and anti-national activities.

The NIA investigations revealed that the accused had created several social media groups on platforms such as Instagram and Signal, which were used to promote unlawful activities threatening the unity, integrity, security and communal harmony of the country.

The NIA continues to investigate the conspiracy to spread extremist propaganda and promote radicalisation, said a statement.

In a separate development, two more accused have been sentenced to Simple Imprisonment (SI) in the Pakistan-linked Visakhapatnam Navy espionage case by a Special Court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), an official said on Tuesday.

The NIA Special Court at Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) has sentenced Kalavalapalli Konda Babu of Visakhapatnam District (Andhra Pradesh) and Aviansh Somal of Kangra District (Himachal Pradesh) to 5 years and 10 months of SI under each of sections 18 of UA(P) Act and section 3 of the Official Secrets Act.

The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 each, and in the event of default of payment, the accused persons will have to undergo an additional one-year SI in the case, said an NIA statement.

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Crime

Mumbai Customs Foils Smuggling Attempt, Seizes ₹14 Crore Worth Of Hydro Ganja At CSMIA

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The Mumbai Customs Department has seized 14 crore rupees worth of hydro ganja and smuggled gold in five separate operations at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport between November 6 and 9. Officials from Zone 3 of the Customs Department carried out the operations, which led to the arrest of multiple passengers arriving from Bangkok, Phuket, and Nairobi.

The first seizure took place on November 6, when a passenger arriving from Bangkok was found carrying 2.87 kilograms of hydroponic cannabis valued at Rs 2.87 crore. The next day, two more passengers flying in from Phuket were caught with nearly 4 kilograms of hydro cannabis, worth approximately Rs 4.2 crore.

On November 8, Customs officials intercepted more passengers arriving from Bangkok and Nairobi, recovering additional hydro cannabis and smuggled 22-carat gold bars weighing 358 grams. The estimated value of the gold is Rs 3.7 lakh.

In total, 13 kilograms and 84 grams of hydro ganja and 358 grams of gold were confiscated over three days. Customs officials stated that strict surveillance measures are being maintained at the airport, and all attempts to smuggle narcotics or gold will be firmly dealt with.

Hydroponic cannabis, often called hydro cannabis, is grown without soil using a nutrient-rich water solution. Common in Thailand, this method enables cultivators to precisely control growing conditions, resulting in faster growth and higher yields. These plants are usually grown indoors under LED or HPS lights, with regulated temperature, humidity, and nutrients. The increasing production of hydro cannabis in Thailand has led to rising smuggling attempts into India.

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Crime

Uttarakhand man injured in Delhi blast was in Chandni Chowk for wedding shopping

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New Delhi, Nov 11: A young man from Gadarpur in Uttarakhand’s Udham Singh Nagar district was among those injured in the blast near Delhi’s Red Fort Metro Station. The injured man has been identified as 28-year-old Harshul Setia.

According to information received, Harshul, son of Sanjeev Setia, is a resident of Saraswati Vihar Colony in Gadarpur. His father said that Harshul is scheduled to get married in February. He had travelled to Delhi with his mother, brother, and fiancee for wedding shopping. They were shopping in a lane opposite the blast site when a shard of glass from the explosion struck Harshul on the head.

Sanjeev Setia said he received a phone call last evening informing him about his son’s injury. He added that Harshul is now safe and in stable condition. Following the advice of security agencies, he declined to make further comments.

He said he is leaving for Delhi to bring his son and family back home. After Harshul’s discharge from LNJP Hospital, the family will return to Gadarpur, where he will introduce his son to the media.

Meanwhile, the white Hyundai i20 car that exploded on Netaji Subhash Marg in Delhi near the Red Fort was parked outside a mosque for nearly two hours before the incident, sources said.

The police managed to piece together the route of the vehicle by obtaining CCTV footage from the area.

The blast took place at around 7 p.m., the police said. The car then took a U-turn near the Old Delhi Railway Station and then headed towards Lower Subhash Marg.

The car slowed down at the traffic signal on Chhata Rail Chowk, and then the explosion occurred, the police said.

It is, however, unclear whether the explosion was meant to take place at the signal or the occupants intended to ram the car into the Red Fort, officials said.

The trail of the car’s ownership is also under investigation. It has been found that the car was sold several times.

The vehicle bore the registration number HR26CE7674. It was first registered in 2014 to one Mohammad Salman, a resident of Gurugram. Following this, the car had been sold multiple times.

Salman sold it to a person called Devender, following which it was sold to a person in Ambala.

The current owner of the car remains unknown, and investigators are working on that aspect.

The registered owner, however, is under arrest and being questioned.

Multiple agencies are working on the case.

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