HC asks if govt has rehab scheme for shelter home children

The Bombay High Court today asked the Maharashtra government whether there is any rehabilitation scheme for the children from shelter homes after they turn 18 years old.
The court was hearing a PIL about sexual abuse of children at a shelter home in suburban Mankhurd.
The division bench headed by Justice V M Kanade also expressed a wish to visit the facility.
The court sought to know if there was any rehabilitation scheme for the children once they turn 18, and asked the government to make a statement on this after four weeks.
The court also ordered that a list of mentally deficient children be given to the department of Social Justice so that available benefits can be extended to them.

On allegations of abuse of children, the court has appointed State Coordination Committee for Child Protection, also known as Project Chunauti, to study the condition of inmates at the Mankhurd shelter home.

However, the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) criticised the functioning of SCCCP in a report filed in the High Court earlier, saying that it was not keeping officials of Mankhurd home informed, and there was a lack of coordination.
SCCCP, in a reply, blamed CWC for trying to harass the staff of Project Chunauti and malign its image.
A city tabloid had on August 23, 2010, reported incidents of mental and physical abuse of children in Kavdas shelter home at Mankhurd. The High Court converted the report into a public interest litigation.