Amid concerns over teenage pregnancies during holidays, awareness drive among girls in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of summer vacations in schools, an awareness campaign was undertaken by the Odisha government at hostels, educating girls about sexual harassment which was found to be rampant, resulting in teenage pregnancies, when they are at home for holidays, a senior official said.

The ST and SC Development, Minorities and Backward Classes Welfare Department undertook the drive, which started last week and ended on Monday, in around 5,800 hostels run by the department, targeting over 2.5 lakh girls before summer vacation, which officially started on April 25 but most of them left for home on Tuesday after improvement in weather, he said, adding schools are likely to reopen in the second week of June.

"The drive was aimed at educating girls to remain alert and be cautious while visiting their homes after it was noticed that many girls faced sexual harassment by close family and relatives during summer vacations, resulting in teenage pregnancies.

"Such incidents happen when parents remain outside for livelihood and the girls are left alone at home in a vulnerable state," the official said.

Besides creating awareness among girls on how to protect themselves and understand the difference between 'good touch' and 'bad touch', the department has also launched 'Mo Parikalpana' initiative, under which the parents are informed what they should do to safeguard their daughters while they are alone at home and their issues are heard, the department's secretary Roopa Roshan Sahoo said.

Another official said that 'Mo Parikalpana' is like a listening window to capture the voices from the ground so that the observations could lead to policy action.

The department has also asked the sexual harassment committees in the hostels to remain alert regarding such complaints and cross-verify those, the official said.

The department had earlier trained hostel matrons and assistant superintendents to conduct counseling sessions on issues such as sexual harassment, child marriage and teenage pregnancies, Sahoo said.

The department has also trained matrons to take stock of the wellness and mental health of girls over the phone and impart counseling and imbibe positive behaviour.