POCSO survivors forced to approach authorities repeatedly to get compensation: panel

The Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights has found delays in disbursal of compensation to child survivors of sexual offences.

A report of the commission, which has been submitted to the government, on the compensation for child survivors in cases registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, observed that child survivors after submitting applications for compensation had to approach the offices concerned repeatedly to get the relief.

A district-level committee should decide on those eligible for the compensation. Interventions should be made at the government level to find funds for paying the compensation, the commission recommended in its report, prepared after a State-level meeting of stakeholders at the end of last year.

The commission also found that the situation at present was such that the survivors got interim relief but did not get final relief. At times, even interim relief was not sanctioned. District and State-level monitoring committees should meet regularly to ensure the compensation was not delayed, the commission recommended.

The compensation for POCSO survivors should be provided by bringing it under a single scheme.

The commission observed that only a small percentage of the fine imposed on the accused in POCSO cases was available to pay compensation to the survivors. Steps should be taken for 50% of the fine to go to victim compensation scheme. Routing of funds from non-governmental organisations for children or from abroad through the government to the victim compensation fund should be explored.

If a child in conflict with law who has been placed in a child care home is sexually assaulted there, the child will be eligible to receive victim compensation.

Instead of depositing the compensation received by the survivors for medical and rehabilitation requirements as fixed deposits, it was necessary to sanction the funds for their immediate needs such as education, the commission recommended.

As soon as FIRs are registered, a copy should be sent to the district legal service authority (DLSA) concerned. However, a delay was noticed in this. Also, statistics showed that the number of survivors who received compensation was very little as compared to the number of cases registered. It should also be investigated if applications for compensation were being denied.

In cases where the accused were relatives, the survivors and the accused got married while in some others settlement was reached. As a result, no one was willing to submit applications for compensation, resulting in decline in the number of applicants.

It was pointed out that parents or guardians were at times not ready to accept survivors living in child care institutions such as entry homes or model homes. It should be explored whether Nirbhaya Fund was being used for rehabilitation of those children, the commission observed.